The Shinobi Project
by Tap-Chan
Summary: They were supposed to be normal. But they never knew how different they were meant to be. Until that day when everything ended and began with a simple revelation. Rated for violence in later chapters. Minor pairings, SasuSaku, NejiTen, NaruHina.
1. Prologue: Konoha Eugenics Programme

**THE SHINOBI PROJECT**

by Tap-Chan

Disclaimer: Kishimoto owns Naruto

**Prologue: Konoha Eugenics Programme**

_Prototype # 0 Entry 240608_

Subject appears healthy and responding to stimulus. I believe it will not be long now before we release said subject for further experimentation. The accelaration process does not appear to have affected its genetic structure negatively, however further observation may be required before a firm conclusion can be reached. If all goes well, release and integration of subject with its biological unit will commence on schedule tomorrow.

_Prototype # 1 Entry 281127_

It is unfortunate that P# 1 is a total dismal failure despite all our attempts to correct its genome. We are still unsure why this error has occured, even with the advent of our selective genetic engineering. Perhaps we can only write this off as a fluke or perhaps the genetic material said subject was produced from was of inferior/contaminated stock. Even as I record this last entry on P# 1, we have begun the release and integration procedure to a suitable family unit as there is nothing more that can be done. This has been a huge setback as well as a huge delay with the subject's late release as compared to P# 2 and P# 3. Termination of all this subject's genetic code from our data storage will eliminate any more future faults.

_Prototype # 2 Entry 280309_

This will be the last entry on P# 2 as subject approaches final stages of release. Though there are doubts on such an early release, I do not believe any more improvement can be made by our scientists, on the subject's genetic structure without causing undue damage. The success we have had in P# 2's improved aim and hand and eye co-ordination will be undoubtedly second only to P# 3's enhanced eyesight. Our success here will surely benefit future units or at least further our research into creating the enhanced genome we are envisioning. However observation of the subject's integration with society will have to be carefully monitored before we proceed with the release of P# 3.

_Prototype # 3 Entry 280703_

Final entry for P# 3 in regards to its release and integration with the subject's biological unit. Following the success of P# 2's release and integration with society, we have concluded it will be safe to release current subject for experimentation. Barring Prototype # 0, P# 3 is far superior in its genetic structure and subsequent abilities in comparison to the recently released P# 2 and the yet to be released P# 1- who is still incapcitated due to errors in its genome. With the success of P# 0, P# 2 and P# 3 as genetic models, we will proceed officially as soon as the delay with P# 1 has been resolved.

_Unit # 1 Entry 291227_

This is the first official entry on U# 1 as we have successfully recreated a close as possible healthy replica of P# 3. Number 1 will have the same enhanced eyesight as P# 3. However, due to the fact of gender difference, we expect a divergence in comparison to the results we have so far gleaned from P# 3. We look forward to U# 1's upcoming developement.

_Unit # 2 Entry 290501_

First official entry, U# 2 has displayed promising results with this genetic material we have combined. While U# 2's genetic enhancement is not exactly visually pleasing, there will be undoubtedly a use for such a skill in Konoha's organization. However, bone density and blood circulatory system will have to be increased to support the added mass. Further observation and experimentation will be required.

_Unit # 3 Entry 290922_

Official first entry, subject has finally displayed a response to the stimulus introduced to it. We had almost given U# 3 up for failure and termination if not for the latest result said stimulus displayed. This subject will be particularly tricky and more observation will be required as the last result displayed immense clarity of perception and brain activity measuring at a range of 200. However, we are puzzled as to why no response was forth coming before in the previous tests. We may perhaps need to devise a whole new testing method for this particular unit. Perhaps more thought will be needed before pursuing this particular genetic strain combination in future units.

_Unit # 4 Entry 290923_

First official entry, U# 4 has responded well to stimulus and displays a unique mental capability. The subject's physical structure however will need tweaking as it is severely inferior to its mental abilities. A decision however has yet to be reached whether or not such manipulation will be required as this unit could be useful in other aspects that do not require physical strength. At the moment, Number 4 seems as if it will develope into a visually pleasing subject in accordance to the subject's biological unit. This will most likely be useful for the role that is most likely to be assigned to it.

_Unit # 5 Entry 290707_

Official first entry for U# 5, subject's vitals are stable and appears to be in good health. Its growth is proceeding normally despite our mistake in fusing animal DNA to its genetic structure. Judging by the subject's test results, we estimate this particular subject will have vastly improved smell, hearing and reflexes. I expect a study into the mutations of U# 5 will be of great use to other subjects in this project. More observation and tests must be done to confirm this.

_Unit # 6 Entry 290123_

First entry for subject U# 6, its growth rate has far exceeded the other subjects in this early stage of the project and has already begun reacting to outside stimulus. We believe this result is a reaction to the introduction of the '_Kikai_' DNA to the subject's genome. It is fortunate no symptom of rejection has appeared yet, however further observation is needed before a conclusion can be reached. However if all goes well, U# 6 may very well be superior to his own natural born biological unit.

_Unit # 7 Entry 290328_

First official entry, subject U# 7 has begun responding to stimulus with rapid progress however at this point, we do not find anything particularly outstanding with this particular specimen. While not a failure, the genetics chosen for this subject has hardly yielded any of the results we expected especially when its code was modified in an attempt to simulate the abilities of one of the early experiments in eugenics. Perhaps time is needed for the genome to mature and progress in developement of the subject's abilities aside from the minor mutation to U# 7's hair.

_Unit # 8 Entry 290723_

First entry for subject U# 8, growth proceeding at a rapid rate and response to stimulus is well-balanced. We have very high hopes for this subject as a unit derived from the results of Prototype # 0. However we have decided to forgo the acceleration process and instead we have combined genetic material from the subject's early biological relatives. While we are unsure what results this combination will yield, we look forward to its developement. Currently, tests have already determined U# 8 will possess superior speed and reflexes to the other eight units. What other abilities it may manifest has yet to be determined.

_Unit # 9 Entry 291010_

First official entry for U# 9 whose place here is unique being a natural born of one of the subjects of the original project. Everybody looks forward to the results this particular subject will yield as its existence is nothing short of spectacular. Number 9 is responding well to the treatment so far and has already survived the fusing of the experimental DNA into its genetic structure despite being natural born before its inclusion into this project. It is unknown whether or not whatever abilities it may or may not have inherited, will be affected by this addition. If this subject survives and matures, it will be given the codename of '_Kyuubi_'. Observation will tell if this unit was worth the effort used to obtain it.

* * *

_Konoha Genetics Institute  
__Leaf Division  
__310420_

It was a normal day in Konoha, normal for a secluded building far from the main city. Normal, until a sudden explosion rocked the building's foundations. At that unexpected attack, the scientists that had been milling about in the laboratory began initiating emergency procedures regarding their work despite the sounds of more explosions being set off. As the last blast door sealed shut, another loud explosion shook the building filling the room with smoke and dust, equiptment and test tubes fell, the sprinkler system activating at the sudden detection of smoke. Many scientists screamed and shouted in surprise and fear as what used to be the main door was in pieces and the wall a pile of rubble. As the smoke cleared, it was plain to see the masked men dressed in black and silver with bone white armor that rushed into the room their weapons trained on the men and women in the practically demolished room. There was little doubt on who these people were.

ANBU.

The Konoha government's special hit squad.

The head scientist trembled slightly but did not back down.

"What is the meaning of this! Even if you guys are ANBU, that does not give you the right to invade this facility! We are running very delicate experiments here."

"And the nature of these experiments have long been abandoned in Konoha. Even by me" came a low voice in the back of the ANBU group.

The scientist turned to look at the man who had spoken.

The ANBU who had spoken took a step forward, his hand pulling the ANBU mask off his face, revealing long white spiky hair and facial tattoos. The man shook out his hair before turning his head to face the shocked scientist. He glared, sending a shiver to run through the frightened man.

"It is you who should be explaining the meaning of this, Yashamaru."

The scientist took a step back in fear. "Jiraiya-sama..."

"Well? What is your explanation? Why are you running an illegal project not sanctioned by Konoha's Hokage? "

"Wh-what? But Jiraiya-sama... w-we recieved notice in the year 27 that we were to pick up on this project-"

"Do _NOT_ lie, Yashamaru. Remember who I am. I know for a fact that Konoha's Eugenics Programme has been defunct for about five years now. It was abandoned along with the Genome Project. _That_ was in the year 26."

"B-But..."

Another loud explosion shook the building, cutting the conversation as a large chunk of the ceiling collapsed. "What the hell-? Weren't all the charges detonated! And I specifically stated that they were only to be set on this level of the building complex." shouted Jiraiya as he dodged another falling chunk of concrete.

The ANBU themselves were avoiding the falling debris. An ANBU with a cat mask answered Jiraiya's query. "They should have all been detonated but apparently that is not the case, Jiraiya-sama. Someone must have set them on the wrong level and forgot to set the timer properly."

When the explosions finally stopped, the room was no more. Rubble littered the floor and many of the ANBU were injured. The scientists were all either dead or nearly there as almost all were buried by the falling concrete. Jiraiya surveyed the area and cursed to himself. There was no way the ANBU that had followed him would have made such a mistake.

But before he could further question the mishap, the explosions had revealed the hidden blast proof chamber. The room that housed the augmented subjects of the project. Jiraiya stared at the row of tubes in awe and horror. Nine of the fogged tubes were occupied with small bodies within, floating suspended in an emerald green solution. Judging by the size of the children, they looked to be about at least a year or more old.

"Jiraiya-sama, we have requested back-up and already the few who are uninjured have gone to scout the rest of the build-" started the ANBU before his gaze rested on the tubes. "By the Founders... are those-?"

"Yes. They're the ones we came to find and free. Go wait for the back-up, Cat. I will access the data on these nine while we wait for specialists to extract them from the tubes."

The cat ANBU bowed. "Yes, Jiraiya-sama."

As Jiraiya walked towards the blinking computer terminal, one of the occupants in one of the tubes caught his eye. Pausing, he walked towards it and wiped at the fogged glass. The metal plate at the tube's base labelled this occupant as Unit # 9.

Jiraiya's eyes widened at the sight that met his gaze.

A small male child with pale hair floating in the liquid was suspended in the tube, an oxygen mask and wires connected to his little body. Each cheek had three striped birth marks making the child look as if he had whiskers.

"My God... Naruto." whispered Jiraiya.

* * *

To be continued...

**Next Chapter: The Twelve**

12/08/08

Revised:02/07/10


	2. Chapter 1: The Twelve

**THE SHINOBI PROJECT**

by Tap-Chan

Disclaimer: Kishimoto owns Naruto

**Chapter 1: The Twelve**

Konoha.

One of the last surviving cities of a post-apocalyptic world, set in a territory that had once been known as the Fire Nation. Enclosed in self containing bio-spheres, each city in the land is ruled independently and Konoha is ruled by the Hokage, the head of state and the Council of Elders. In the grip of the warring strife that had destroyed the land and shattered the continent, cities relied only on themselves, building a close-knit civilization that gave its trust to its people and no others. The Hokage monitors almost every major industry in the city and is a title handed down from one Hokage to a chosen apprentice. Civilians and Konoha's military make up the citizens of the city and while the civilians live out normal lives, they all know the Hokage's word on any matter regarding the city is final and is to be obeyed without question. Made up of stone, glass and metal, the Hokage's tower spirals up high into Konoha's skyline casting its shadow over the city.

And though it is a peaceful time and a peaceful place, Konoha is not without its dark shadows and secrets. Secrets that may yet shatter the illusion and bring forth the coming storm.

_Uchiha District, Konoha  
__350724_

Six year old Uchiha Sasuke stared in horror at the massacre that lay before him. Blood was splattered all over the walls on every building in the Uchiha district. Bodies of his uncles, aunts and cousins lay, bloodied and broken. The young boy trembled in fear at the sight, his knees shaking. Then, he started to run- his feet taking him towards the main house. His home.

This couldn't be true. He had just celebrated his birthday scarcely a day before. His school mates had just thrown their own celebration for him today. Everybody could not be dead.

Making his way into the main house, Sasuke staggered towards his parents' room. They had to be alive. If they were dead...

What could he do?

Alone?

His small hands pushed open the door that lead to his parents' room and froze at the sight that greeted his eyes.

"Nii-san?"

Standing above his parents' dead bodies was his only sibling. His beloved older brother, his hands stained with blood, holding a blood slicked katana, an Uchiha family heirloom, in one and a gun in the other. His brother glanced at him over his shoulder and Sasuke was frozen at the sight.

"Nii-san?" repeated Sasuke weakly. Instead of their usual coal black, Uchiha Itachi's eyes were the colour of blood, a black wheel-like circle spinning in his eyes. Sasuke had never seen his brother look scarier than he had now.

"Sasuke."

"Why?" asked Sasuke as tears fell from his eyes.

Itachi was silent as he stared at his little brother. Then, his image flickered before Sasuke's eyes and in a blink, Itachi was before him. A bloodied hand grasped Sasuke's neck and slammed him into the ground, causing the younger boy to cry out in alarm. Sasuke scrabbled at his brother's arm trying to free himself, his fingers slipping on his brother's blood slicked wrist.

Itachi cocked his head to the side as if to ponder the question Sasuke had asked.

"Why? Because I can."

Sasuke's eyes widened in shock and alarm. "Those people were our family, Nii-san! _Nii-san!_" screamed Sasuke hysterically, as he struggled even harder, his black eyes growing wild. "And your eyes!"

"Aa. Biologically."

Itachi tightened his grip slightly and Sasuke stilled out of fear.

Itachi stared at the frightened face of his younger sibling before leaning down close to Sasuke's ear. "Aa, we're related biologically and genetically but I wouldn't go so far as parents. We're not 'natural-born'. You're not like _them_, you're like _me_, Sasuke. These eyes. Just like me. And I'll show you what they can do."

And Sasuke screamed.

_"If you want vengeance, brother... survive and grow stronger. When you have eyes like mine, come at me."_

* * *

_Konoha Orphanage  
__350906_

A young blonde sat quietly on his bed in the night, staring out the window at the full moon. He is called Uzumaki Naruto and for as long as he can remember, he has had no parents. Tonight would be his last night in the orphanage, because tomorrow someone named Umino Iruka was coming to adopt him. His blue eyes flicked around to look at the other sleeping children within the orphanage dorm. Well, he would not miss this place. The other children did not get along well with him. They disliked his mischief making and thought him odd with his habit of talking to himself and more often than not, he sat for hours on end staring into empty space. The caretakers hardly took notice of him unless he had done something wrong. Well, that was fine. He really wouldn't miss this place anyway.

"Hey, Kyuubi... do you think living with the guy will be fun?" whispered the boy to himself. There was a pause before the blonde continued his strange quiet one-sided conversation with the air. "You think so?" "Aa... I hope he cooks ramen." "I won't be lonely. You're here with me, Kyuubi."

Slowly, the boy fell asleep.

* * *

_Konoha Park  
__351012_

A little girl sat amidst the fallen autumn leaves and mud, crying her eyes out. Her hair was stained with clumps of mud and her coat was soiled. The girls at the kindergarten had bullied her again today, telling her how large her forehead was and how freaky her hair was. Well, she no longer wanted pink hair, but it didn't seem as if the colour would go away. Now trying to turn it mud brown had not worked either as it had only gotten her favourite jacket dirty. As she sat weeping, she did not notice the soft sound of foot steps approaching her.

A handkerchief was thrust into her line of vision, and she stopped her sniffling to look up. Standing before her was a pretty blonde girl with two other little boys. One boy was munching on a packet of chips while the other looked bored to tears, his foot scuffling the dirt in impatience. Turning her gaze back to the proffered handkerchief, she studied the girl holding it. Probably about her age, her light blue eyes sparkling as her short platinum coloured hair danced with the wind.

"Hey, are you going to take it or not?"

Snapping out of her gaze, the pink-haired girl hesitantly accepted the piece of cloth. The blonde girl proceeded to smile, her face brightening up like the sun.

"Hey, hey- what's your name?"

"You're being rude, Ino." came an exasperated voice from the bored looking boy. He had in fact already laid himself down on the grass nearby, his eyes closed as if to take a nap. The girl the boy had called Ino, turned to glare at him. "You're one to talk, Shika! You were just going to leave her alone to let her cry! Are you listening, Shika!" screeched Ino.

As Ino continued to argue one-sidedly with the boy she called Shika, the other quieter boy who had been mostly over looked came to squat in front of her, his pudgy fingers still bringing chips to his mouth non-stop. His eyes curious as he studied her dirty form.

"Hey, so... what _is_ your name? I'm Chouji."

"Sa-Sakura..." whispered the pink-haired girl.

Ino hearing the softly spoken name, stopped her practically one-sided bickering with 'Shika' and returned her attention to the timid Sakura. A radiant smile on her face, Ino once again was in front of Sakura, having pushed Chouji out of the way. "Sakura? That's a pretty name. I'm Yamanaka Ino! Don't bother with Shika, he's lazy. Chouji eats all day- it's pretty boring. Will you be my firend? Another girl to play with would be so much better. What do you think? Do you like flowers? My mum runs a flower shop and-"

"Let her breathe, Ino. You'll scare her with your talking. And there's nothing wrong with eating." mumbled Chouji.

"Hmmph." sniffed Ino as she pulled Sakura to her feet. "Let's go, Sakura... they're just _boys_."

Sakura blinked in surprise as she was led away. Looking over her shoulder she saw the two little boys merely shrug and continue to sit on the grass, Chouji munching his chips and Shika dozing in the shade. She surprised Ino by stopping suddenly and turning around to face the two boys. "Um... I'm Haruno Sakura! Nice to meet you!" she shouted, going so far as to bow.

The boys blinked in surprise before nodding their heads in return.

"Nice to meet you, too! I'm Akimichi Chouji!" shouted the plump boy in reply. He turned and glanced at his companion before returning his attention to the two girls. "And he's Nara Shikamaru!" he continued pointing to the lazy boy.

Said boy merely raised a small arm in acknowledgment, not even bothering to get up or turn his head to look in their direction.

Ino sighed before taking hold of Sakura again. "Come on, we can go to my house and get you clean." she said smiling. Turning her head back, she called back towards the two boys. "See you later, Chouji! Shika!"

* * *

_Hyuuga Compound, Konoha  
__Main House Shooting Range  
__351012_

Five continuous shots rang out, echoing within the confines of the shooting range. As the target neared the shooter, a few spectators whispered in surprise and awe. All five had hit fatality points on the paper cut out. The shooter, a young boy of seven ignored the whisperings and looks that he recieved. He instead turned to the man standing next to him, observing his practice. The man nodded in satisfaction.

"Very good Neji. You've quickly learned how to aim and fire the normal hand gun. Your rapid progress is astounding."

The young boy bowed. "Thank you, Uncle. Your guidance has helped tremendously."

"Hmmm. Very well, that is all for today. I believe you have your Traditional studies now. You may leave."

Neji bowed once more before depositing his gun in the tray and turned to leave the shooting range. As he walked towards the exit, his ears heard the whispers.

"So he's the one everybody's calling the Hyuuga prodigy, eh? He's just a branch house member." sneered one. "Well, if his father had been born first, he would have been the heir." "Did you see that? He managed to hit the fatality points. Is he really just seven?" muttered another. "He's a child." said another. "A pity the Hyuuga heir lacks his aptitude." "Ah, that's true... Hinata-sama does struggle at many things." "Still, that brat pisses me off."

Neji stopped in his tracks his pale lavender-white pupils moving to the corner of his eyes, staring coldly at the group. The whispering Hyuuga members fell quiet as they realized their object of discussion was staring at them. Neji stood still for a few moments before he continued on his way towards the exit.

"He's a bit like a _monster_." whispered one observer quietly. The others nodded in agreement. "He's _different_ from us."

Neji wanted to snort in disdain. Did those idiots have nothing better to do than gossip? Of course he was different. He _knew_ he was different. How, he was not sure. But he knew he was just _different_.

A small girl bumped clumsily into him. Like all Hyuuga's, she had pale lavender-white eyes. However, unlike the usual dark brown or regular black hair, her black hair was as dark as midnight. Her hair at times seemed almost to shimmer a deep dark blue.

"Ne-Neji-niisan!" squeeked the girl in surprise. "I'm sorry, I-I..."

"Hinata-sama." bowed Neji before walking away, ignoring the girl's stammered stutterings.

He continued walking even though he could feel her eyes on his back. Oddly, there were times when he saw flashes of vision that appeared to be either directly behind him or either side of him. Now was one of those times. He knew she was watching him fearfully and sadly. It didn't matter that they were cousins, he still despised most of the family for the way they looked at him. The heiress was not much different in his opinion.

* * *

_Konoha Playground  
__351120_

She sat on the swing staring out at the curious three boys playing (or perhaps it was arguing?) in the sand box. She cocked her head to the side as the boy with the very bushy eyebrows and bad hair cut started rough housing with the boy with tattooed triangles on his face. The other boy merely stared at them solemnly through his round dark glasses. She thought that quite odd.

As she watched, the boy with the bushy eyebrows fell backwards from a particularly hard shove by the boy with the tattoos.

The boy sneered at the boy with the bushy brows and bad haircut, his face in a sort of snarl.

"I didn't say that! I just said the truth, Rock Lee!" shouted the boy, before he turned to the other young boy with the dark glasses. "We're leaving, Shino!"

The other boy, tilted his head in question before replying, "You were in the wrong too, Kiba."

"Let's GO, Shino!"

The boy named Kiba left, with the quiet boy named Shino, looking back at the one called Rock Lee, who was still on the ground.

"You really shouldn't have picked a fight with Kiba, Lee..." muttered Shino quietly before leaving and heading in the direction of his friend.

As the other two boys walked away, she watched the remaining boy still sitting on the sand hunch his shoulders as they began to shake a little. Walking towards the boy, she frowned as she squatted in front of him.

"Hey, you alright?" she asked.

"Go away."

"Huh, I was just being nice. Well, fine!" she said frowning as she started to stand.

"Wait! I'm sorry... I-" stuttered the boy before bursting into tears, startling the young girl.

"Hey, you're a boy! Stop crying!" exclaimed the girl as she looked around helplessly as the boy in front of her continued to weep.

Seconds passed until the girl made a frustrated sound.

"Aaargh! Mou! Stop it already!"

The boy blinked in shock at the girl's outburst, halted his crying with a hiccup as he turned wide eyes at her.

"You're a BOY aren't you? If you're a boy, then stand up!"

The boy shot to his feet.

"Wipe that snot!"

The boy hurriedly swiped his small clenched fist clumsily across his nose and eyes.

"Look straight and don't cry!"

The little girl nodded smartly, but before she could say anything else, a dark shadow loomed over the two children. Looking up, the girl gave a shout of surprise as a man with a funny bowl cut hair style, with tears in his eyes try to hug the two of them.

The girl instinctively avoided the man's hands as he grabbed them up. She watched as the strange man proceeded to hug the living daylights out of the boy, his eyes continuing to cry. Both had bushy brows and strange hairstyles. But that was not what made the pair strange. The girl backed slowly away from the weird man as he continued to cry.

"I've never seen a more touching display of the fire of YOUTH!" exclaimed the man as he continued to bawl. "My name is Maito Gai, what are yours, youthful children?"

The boy in the man's arms was silent for a second before stammering out a name. "Rock Lee..."

Maito Gai turned his watery eyes, shining with anticipation on the little girl standing near him.

It was official.

She was freaked out by the strange man.

"Tennou Tenko. But I prefer Tenten."

* * *

_Konoha Council,  
__390225_

It was quiet for a brief moment in the meeting chambers on the Konoha Council at the Hokage Tower. The four elderly that made up the Council, three men and a woman sat opposite a group of younger men and women. Some had frowns on their faces while others were contemplative of the decree that had been announced by the council.

"I am against this proposal, Hokage-sama!" exclaimed a man wearing dark clothes in a chinese style.

"As am I!" exclaimed a woman wearing a red qi pao with a white circle as a crest. "You promised the children would have regular childhoods and be allowed to enter the academy voluntarily if they so wished it! You are reneging on that promise!"

Several murmurs and nods filtered around the gathered men and women.

"They are too young." said a large build man.

"They are almost twelve years old." said the only elderly woman on the council.

"And that promise was not a decision that the Hokage should have made on his own." commented another of the elders.

"With all due respect, Utatane-sama, some of the children aren't even suitable in temperament for the future the council has decreed." said a man with spiky hair tied up high in a pineapple-like pony tail.

"Nara is right. And their abilities-"

"They will learn the temperament and their abilities will be cultivated. The situation has changed from eight years ago. Konoha cannot afford to leave unused potential-"

"They are children! Not weapons for your pleasure!"

"Children that are property of Konoha's military when your clans consented to the genetic manipulation of your genes when you donated genetic material twenty years ago!" snarled an elder.

"We weren't head of our clans then! And those children were created without our permission in that illegal genetics programme."

"Yes, and we returned the products from that raid, but no matter if it was illegal, their creation is still under Konoha-"

"Enough!" snapped the Hokage. "Enough." he sighed again at a softer voice. "You go too far, Danzou."

The other man shot a glare at the Hokage. "_You_ don't go far enough."

"Sarutobi is right, Danzou. Enough." said other elderly man.

"But Danzou is right that the children still belong to the military. It is within our jurisdiction to order them into academy training, Haruno-san." said Utatane.

"But-"

"I'm sorry, Haruno-san. I know I am reneging on my word to all of you, but Danzou is correct that the situation now is very different than the situation eight years prior. Konoha is entering a time where in the coming future, we may require the talents of individuals like your children." sighed the Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen.

"Is a potential war with Suna of the Nation of Sand really on the horizon then?" asked a man with white eyes.

"Not in the immediate future, Hyuuga-san. But we predict it may happen in a few years from now with the trouble that has been brewing within their biosphere." answered Utatane Koharu.

"And it is vital we be ready for that time." continued Mitokado Homura, the elder who had quieted the other elder, Shimura Danzou.

"Reports from my men also tell me the children are rapidly progressing beyond their peers. They will be more suited to the Academy than the regular education system."

The men and women facing the council were silent, unable to reply.

"It is decided then. The children Hyuuga Neji, Tennou Tenko and Rock Lee are to be inducted into the Konoha Academy of Military Arts, effective immediately while the children Hyuuga Hinata, Uchiha Sasuke, Nara Shikamaru, Yamanaka Ino, Akimichi Chouji, Aburame Shino, Inuzuka Kiba, Haruno Sakura and Uzumaki Naruto to be inducted into the Konoha Academy of Military Arts in their eleventh year." stated the Hokage.

* * *

_Academy of Military Arts,  
__Konoha  
__390402_

Konoha Academy of Military Arts or better known as just Konoha Academy is the training institution of Konoha's military. On average, the age of enrolment into the academy is at the age of fifteen when many complete their primary regular education. A majority of the population tend to enrol however often, only half manage to complete the rigorous three years at the academy and go on to become part of Konoha's military.

It is the beginning of a new year at the academy and all would be normal if not for the unusual enrolment of three eleven year olds.

Hyuuga Neji heard the whispers and could see the looks from the students about him. It is no different from the whispers he hears in the Hyuuga compound.

"I heard they're eleven. _Eleven!_ Can you believe it?"

"That's impossible, I was still in general education at that age."

"What are they doing at the Academy?"

"I'll bet they got in because of family connections." sneered one.

"Idiot! That's not possible."

"Why not? That boy's a Hyuuga isn't he?"

"Well, the other two aren't from any prestigious clans!"

"Both of you are morons, this is the _Academy! _You don't get in just by name."

"I still say-"

Neji ignored the last of the whisperings, bored with their speculations and the same words he had heard the whole morning since entering the Academy. He was unsure why he'd been enrolled so quickly into the Academy by his uncle as well, but surmised it had to do with his being _different_ that the other Hyuuga clan members always talked about behind his back.

Turning slightly, he looked at the other two eleven year-olds besides himself that had entered the Academy. One was a boy with bushy brows and a bowl hair cut wearing the ugliest green suit he'd ever seen, with an enthusiastic expression on his face. The boy was chattering non-stop to the other eleven year old, a girl wearing an oriental blouse with her brown hair in an ox-horn style, who looked miserable and about to strangle the boy.

The girl sighed and turned his way suddenly, both locked eyes and stared for a minute before the girl smiled and turned back to answer the other boy on something he had asked. The girl pointed his way for a second and Neji noted the other boy craning his head to get a look at him.

It was clear the boy was about to get up and shout something by the sudden lift on his hand in an enthusiastic wave when their instructor walked into class.

Neji had never been more relieved.

* * *

_Academy,  
__Shooting Range  
__Konoha  
__390725_

It had been a little over three months since the term began and already four students in their class alone had dropped out of the Academy to pursue other career fields. Neji frowned at the lack of determination held by many in the Academy. While there were plenty of students that constantly complained about their fears of not finishing the Academy, there were also those that sniped at him and the other two eleven year olds in the Academy.

He had come to form an aquaintance and simple understanding with the other two his age. They did not bother in his affairs and he would help in their training. While the girl, Tennou Tenko or Tenten as she was asked to be called, hardly required much of his help, the boy Rock Lee seemed to require constant effort. In fact, the boy seemed to see, in his mind alone at least, Neji as a rival and tried to challenge the Hyuuga at every chance he got.

While his tenacity was sort of admirable, his lack of any amazing skill did not impress Hyuuga Neji one bit. In fact, it was because Rock Lee was so ordinary that Neji often wondered how Lee had gotten into the Academy at his age in the first place, unlike himself and Tenten.

Neji shook his head as he watched Lee squeeze the trigger of his hand weapon only to miss the target once again.

On the other side next to him, Tenten lifted her own hand gun and fired three shots off in rapid procession. With his excellent eyesight, he could tell all her shots had hit the target dead center. Her precision and aim never failed to impress him with their uncanny accuracy, whether it was with modern hand held weapons or ancient throwing weapons like kunai, shuriken and senbon. While his own aim was good, he did not have Tenten's perfect accuracy.

"In good shape today too, I see." commented Neji.

"Yeah, this class is a bit dull to be honest but it doesn't hurt to keep with practice." answered Tenten as she reloaded another ammo cartridge into her gun.

Neji cocked his own gun and fired off two rounds into his target, watching the two shots hit two or three inches off the bullseye.

"You need to correct your aim ten centimetres to the left, Neji." said Tenten as she fired another shot towards the target.

"Aa." replied Neji.

* * *

_Academy,  
__Classroom 9  
__Konoha  
__391206_

Rock Lee was excited.

He had lasted eight months in the Academy where many others had only managed perhaps five before leaving the Academy for good. While his parents had not insisted he finish the Academy to become a military man, he was determined to do it for his own sake and prove that he could make it through and become like his idol, Maito Gai.

And today was a milestone. One step in his goal. The remaining students would finally be seperated into groups of three to continue their training under a jounin-rank personal instructor from the military.

Lee fidgeted in his seat, almost barely able to contain his excitement.

"You all know today is the day where regular training ends and your two year training under your personal instructor begins. Who here can tell me what ranks there are in the military and what rank your instructor will hold?"

Every person who studied the military arts knew of the five ranks in the military. While only four were official and spoke of, many would often still aspire to the shadowy fifth rank that was only spoken of in secret. ANBU. The best of the best.

A student in the back raised their hand.

"The ranks are Hokage - the leader of the village and military, Jounin - the highest rank attainable after the Hokage, Chuunin - mid-level rank and the lowest rank in our military, the Genin." answered the student.

Their instructor nodded. "Very good. And the rank your personal instructor will hold is?"

"Jounin, sir." replied another student.

"That's right. While this will be your last class with many of your instructors here at the Academy, you are all always welcome to seek advice from any of us here in the Academy." smiled their instructor. "Well, that concludes this class. Take care everyone, and all of us here at the Academy wish you well in the coming trials and we hope to see all of you, graduate and take your place with us in Konoha's military. Group listings as well as meeting dates are posted outside on the main notice board. Class dismissed."

Rock Lee along with many of the other students shot out of their seats in a rush towards the notice board, eager to find out who their group mates and instructors were.

Lee noticed that Hyuuga Neji and Tenten were hardly interested, both prefering to take their time to and chat with each other rather than rush towards the crush of students crowded around the notice board.

* * *

_Academy Grounds  
__Training Field # 5  
__391211_

Tennou Tenko or Tenten as she preferred to be called, groaned in dismay. For the five days, she had asked the heavens what crime she had committed to recieve such punishment. She could not believe her personal jounin-rank instructor was none other than the strange man she had met as a child, when trying to stop Rock Lee from crying in the park, Maito Gai.

'_Why me?'_

Already, Lee was estatic over the appointment of his 'idol' as their instructor. Their, referring to Hyuuga Neji, Rock Lee and herself as a team. Neither Neji nor she, herself, were surprised at the team listing. While the usual team combinations were made to balance out flaws in each individual member, it was also obvious to Neji that the three of them had been singled out, being the only eleven year olds in their whole year to be enrolled into the Academy.

Neji had surmised it would not be surprising that the three of them would end up in the same team. And Neji had been right.

Tenten sighed.

"What is wrong?" came the Hyuuga's familiar voice.

"Nothing. I'm just not looking forward to meeting our instructor." replied Tenten as she closed her eyes.

"Why not? Lee seems very keen."

Tenten peeked open an eye to see Lee's exuberant movements as he expended his excitement on the training dummies.

"That's because Gai is Lee's idol." answered Tenten as she closed her eye once more and leaned back, enjoying the sun.

"Idol?"

"You'll see."

Hyuuga Neji frowned at his female team mate's cryptic reply, the faint beginnings of apprehension creeping upon his thoughts. Was their new instructor so distasteful?

The flicker of an image flashed through his eyes and Neji knew is was from behind him, where their jounin instructor was approaching and Neji cringed at the brief image.

The glimpse he had caught of their new instructor before he appeared over the hillside was reminiscent of his other team mate - Rock Lee.

Bushy brows and a bowl hair cut, wearing the ugly green suit. Except this was an adult version of what could very well be a future Rock Lee.

Tenten who had caught the grimace on his face sighed and sat up. "Told you."

Two minutes later, the sounds of cries could be heard from Training Field number five...

"Lee!"

"Gai-senseiiii!"

"Lee-ee!"

"Gaiiii-sensei!"

"Oh brother..."

* * *

_Academy,  
__Front Gate  
__Konoha  
__400403_

Uchiha Sasuke stared dispassionately at the sea of fifteen year olds hanging about in the courtyard, awaiting class assignments. A few of the teens gave him brief odd looks before turning away at the sight of his clan symbol. Granted he had been a bit surprised when the formal notice had been sent to his home on his enrolment into the Academy but this suited him just fine. The faster he became part of the military, the faster he could attain power for his revenge.

Intent on ignoring the gossipping teens around him, he headed towards the shaded trees when something the teens said caught his attention.

"Hey... that's Uchiha."

"No way, _another_ eleven year old?"

Another? There were others besides him?

"That's crazy, they can't have finished general education already!"

True. He had not finished it, but the rest of the lessons were really quite boring since he'd read everything in advance.

"This is like the second year in a row. I heard from my brother that three eleven year olds were enrolled here last year."

That was an interesting bit of information. So, the Academy had done this before.

"You know, I get that Uchiha and Hyuuga would enrol early, but what's up with those three kids over there?"

A Hyuuga?

"I know the blonde. My little sister says he's a bit odd but that he's almost dumb as a brick."

That intrigued Sasuke as he looked around for said 'blonde'. He caught sight of a short blonde eleven year old sitting around with two other boys their age. One of the boys had messy brown hair, facial markings and a small puppy while the other was a dark haired boy who favoured sunglasses and a high collared windcheater.

He was interrupted in his observation when four more eleven year olds walked past the gate. Well, three walked past the gate while dragging the fourth anyway and making a loud ruckus.

"Shika, you're SO lazy!" screeched the blonde girl who was dragging the reluctant boy's arm.

"Shut up, Ino. I don't want to go to military school."

"Ne, you know you can't refuse Shikamaru. Your parents said so." replied the rotund boy.

"This is so troublesome."

The last girl in the group of four had strange pink hair and seemed pretty quiet as she gave an odd sort of smile and a pat to the defeated boy being dragged by the blonde.

Overall, Uchiha Sasuke was not impressed his peers.

* * *

_Academy,  
__Close Combat Class  
__Konoha  
__400609_

It was a sparring session today.

Umino Iruka, a chuunin ranked instructor at the Academy watched contemplatively at the progress of his students. As he watched many of the students execute quick back flips and ground rolls, it was clear to his eyes that many of the eleven year olds stood out amongst the other students. Particularly the last Uchiha of Konoha, Sasuke.

The boy was without a doubt agile and quick on his feet. It often unnerved him how Sasuke seemed so at ease and at home in a combat situation.

Iruka glanced briefly at the others, noting Aburame Shino's own quick moves of defense and tactical retreat in the midst of his sparring session with an older fifteen year old.

A large shape barrelled past the corner of his vision, catching his attention as he watched the boy known as Akimichi Chouji tackle his opponent into the training mats with surprising speed. For such a large boy, his speed was unexpected.

His gaze continued to run over the others, his attention often stopping at the other eleven year olds like Nara Shikamaru and Inuzuka Kiba. Iruka had to chuckle under his breath as he watched Shikamaru's sparring partner start to turn red in the face from either exertion or anger, Iruka was not sure. Shikamaru often caused much exasperation with his tendency to sleep in class, however at this moment, while Shikamaru seemed to move in a lazy fashion, often side-stepping and dodging kicks and punches, it was obvious the boy was watching the movements and predicting the actions of his opponent with uncanny insight.

Kiba himself seemed to be enjoying the exercise as he rushed at his opponent every so often, keeping the older boy off balance. It was clear to Iruka that Kiba almost seemed to be playing a fast game of tag as the boy grinned cheekily at his opponent.

The only three girls of the group of eleven year olds held they're own against their opponents, though the Hyuuga and Haruno girl were not as confident in their movements as their peer, Yamanaka. Though they did not seem to exhibit any of the flashy abilities of the boys, Iruka was still always amazed that their progress matched that of the older fifteen year olds.

Finally, Iruka's gaze came to rest on his adopted ward, Uzumaki Naruto. The blonde boy often had trouble keeping up in classes and tended to create chaos in the classroom. Currently it was no different in the sparring session. Naruto's fifteen year old opponent had beaten him soundly in the spar. But what often surprised Iruka was Naruto's extreme stamina and hard-headed perserverance. Iruka watched as the boy got up time and time again to charge the older student, and each time, Naruto got ever closer to defeating his opponent.

Naruto seemed to adapt tactically on the fly without consideration of any plan, relying instinctively on the information from his senses unlike his other peers who processed and understood the information with their minds to create battle strategies like Sasuke, Shino, Shikamaru and Haruno.

As the sparring session ended and Iruka watched as Naruto, Sasuke, Chouji and Kiba picked themselves up and proceeded to exit the combat hall looking hardly winded that his thoughts headed towards the one phrase that often rang in his mind when he watched the nine eleven year olds in varying situations...

Haruno, Shikamaru, and Shino in their tactical and analytical abilities.

Hyuuga and Yamanaka in their stealth and information gathering abilities.

The one thought always came back to echo no matter how often he forgot it.

_'They may seem normal, but they were genetically engineered for war.'_

* * *

To be continued...

I started this story two years ago and only planned to post it when I had a whole big chunk written out, but the story stalled quite quickly into the first chapter. That and the fact I haven't really been following Naruto at all since the beginning of the second arc. But recently, I came across this again, sitting unfinished on my computer. So I decided to just try this story again and hope I finish it while I'm not busy with work. (Because I really want to just write out a happy fantasy for myself) I'm actually pretty pleased with making Tenten's name as a portmanteau since it doesn't look like Kishimoto will give her a family any time soon.

**Next Chapter: Graduation**

04/07/10


	3. Chapter 2: Graduation

**THE SHINOBI PROJECT**

by Tap-Chan

Disclaimer: Kishimoto owns Naruto

**Chapter 2: Graduation**

_Academy,  
__Classroom 11  
__Konoha  
__401218_

Nara Shikamaru stared outside the classroom window as he watched the clouds pass overhead.

The sky was a calm blue as usual with no sign of any change. The weather was ever constant and predictable living within a bio-sphere. Rain fell twice a week, and the weather was always grey on Wednesday. While his mind understood the blue sky was little more than an illusion created by the bio-sphere, he could not help but be comforted by the peace the fluffy looking wisps of vapour provided.

The class instructor, Umino Iruka seemed to be talking about something regarding the division of the remaining students into three men teams, continuing their military training under a jounin ranked instructor. Paying no attention, Shikamaru gave a yawn. Class was boring and bothersome. Many of his classmates from when he had first enrolled in the Academy had already left and Shikamaru estimated that within the whole school year, perhaps only thirty percent of the two hundred students remained.

He had not wanted to attend the military Academy. Fighting was just too troublesome.

Although his own parents served in the military, he had only wanted to simply complete general education averagely and perhaps go into an average career where there was no possibility of battle, live an average life and die a peaceful death. But strangely, his parents had come home one evening one year ago and insisted he join the Academy.

Arguing would have been tiresome, so he had merely accepted their wishes albeit reluctantly as he recalled his neighbour and childhood friend, Yamanaka Ino dragging him on their first day through the Academy gates. He could have followed in the footsteps of other students and dropped out, but even that was troublesome.

His parents would have made a fuss and then he would have had to return to regular education in order to pursue another career. It really _was_ just easier to continue on in military school.

His eyes wandered over towards the remaining students who had survived the last eight months in the Academy and personally, he was amazed Uzumaki Naruto had managed to tough it out while many others had crumbled and left.

Naruto was after all, the worst in their year. The dead-last.

But Shikamaru had to admit...

While Naruto was no intellectual, the blonde had good instincts.

* * *

_Academy Grounds,  
__Training Field # 9  
__Konoha  
__401222_

Uzumaki Naruto sat on one of the large wooden poles that were embedded in the ground watching for his new instructor. The meeting time had already passed by two hours and their new instructor had yet to show his face.

Glancing down towards where his two team mates sat, Naruto scowled at the dark haired boy, Uchiha Sasuke. Naruto and Sasuke had instantly taken a disliking to each other in their first week of class as Sasuke seemed to always stare down his nose at him.

Sure, the Uchiha bastard had skills and talent. Brains and looks. Was it even possible that Uchiha Sasuke was _actually_ a real, live, flesh and blood boy? Unfortunately, the answer was yes. He had even gone out of his way to check.

But the real reason that Naruto really disliked the dark haired boy was because of the girl next to him.

Naruto's eyes moved to glance over at his pink-headed female team mate. Haruno Sakura.

The girl had been fairly quiet when she had first enrolled into the Academy and Naruto had instantly been smitten by the girl. Her personality had changed slightly though, in the following months when she and her best friend, Yamanaka Ino had both gotten into an argument, ending in a dissolution of their friendship.

Over Uchiha Sasuke no less!

Scowling, Naruto hopped off the pole, landing in front of his two team mates.

"This is stupid. We've been waiting two hours already and this Hatake Kakashi has yet to show up." muttered Naruto in irritation as he watched Sakura watch Sasuke, giggling every so often.

Sasuke looked up, turning his dark eyes to look at Naruto. Staring back, Naruto frowned at the glare in Sasuke's eyes. Naruto knew while Uchiha Sasuke's face rarely betrayed any sort of emotion, his eyes were always suffused with many emotions, often anger. But right now, the main emotion he saw was irritation.

"Iruka-sensei is going to hear about this when I get home and then I'm going to make him pay for a whole lot of ramen at Ichiraku for sticking me in a team with you."

Sakura rolled her eyes as Naruto continued to pace back and forth.

"Oh sit down, Naruto."

"And then I'll order a _huge_ bowl of beef ramen and then miso, I'll make Iruka-sensei pay for extra pork too!"

Sasuke gave a smirk before glancing over at Sakura.

"It's no use, Haruno Sakura. The idiot can't hear you over all the noodles in his brain."

"What did you say, bastard!"

"Hmh."

"Are you picking a fight with me, bastard!"

"Naruto!" exclaimed Sakura.

"A-ny-time - mo-ron." enunciated Sasuke.

"Sasuke-kun!"

* * *

A few feet away, hidden in the foliage of the trees, Hatake Kakashi watched the three students assigned to him, as the girl tried to keep a fight from breaking out between the two boys, with little success.

The short blonde charged at the dark haired boy in a clumsy and ill-thought out battle strategy. Kakashi gave a little wince as the Uchiha boy sent the blonde, Uzumaki crashing face first into the dirt as the girl, Haruno Sakura looked on in horror.

As he watched the pair continue to fight, Kakashi began to better understand the skills both boys possessed. His thoughts replayed his last meeting with the Hokage when he had been assigned as a jounin instructor.

_"Me? An instructor? With respect, Hokage-sama... why? There are many other jounin who specialise in the personal instruction of Academy students."_

_"True, but none are like _you_, Kakashi. The students I have assigned to you are _special_ and in particular, the survivor of the Uchiha clan, Sasuke."_

_Kakashi stiffened at the name._

_"Uchiha?"_

_"You as one of the last of our third generation gen-ees know about that illegal programme that was halted over nine years ago, do you not?"_

_Kakashi nodded. As a gen-e, or genetically engineered soldier, he had been one of the few who had heard of the illegally resumed research into genetic engineering that had been forcefully halted by Jiraiya-sama, one the three first gen-ees in Konoha history._

_"What you do not know, was that nine gen-e children were recovered from the facility as well as the records of the four that preceded them. The students I have assigned to you are three of the nine."_

_Kakashi raised his eyebrow in question. "However, from your speech, I am to understand that the other six have not been assigned under a gen-e instructor. What makes these three, so special that you require my skills?"_

_"It is the two boys that require your expertise. You are the only one with knowledge on the Uchiha's unique genetic ability, Sharingan as well as the fact that from the many reports I have received, Uchiha Sasuke is likely at the moment, the most dangerous of his nine peers."_

_"And the other boy?"_

_"Uzumaki Naruto. He's a dark horse that may yet become the most dangerous of the gen-ees to date. The boy was an experiment by the researchers."_

_"Uzumaki...? Isn't that-"_

_"He is the progeny of second generation gen-e, Namikaze Minato, the fourth Hokage and his gen-e wife, Uzumaki Kushina."_

_"Wait a minute, when Konoha abandoned its eugenics programme, I'm certain Minato-sensei destroyed all the genetic data regarding Uzumaki Kushina and himself."_

_"He did."_

_"Then how-"_

_"Naruto is their natural born son that was stolen when they were killed. The child somehow ended up at that facility and it is clear from the data by the scientists, that he has been altered. But we do not know to what extent. That is why I need you as this group's instructor." answered the Hokage solemnly._

_"..."_

Kakashi was pulled out of his memory by the battle cry of Uzumaki Naruto as the boy started his charge at Uchiha Sasuke once more. Kakashi was surprised that the fight between both boys had escalated to the use of bladed weapons.

It was time to end this.

* * *

Haruno Sakura bit her lip as she watched both her team mates proceed to beat, well, one of them tried, the stuffing out of each other. She winced as Sasuke, the boy she currently had a crush on, delivered a particularly nasty punch that had Naruto staggering backwards before the blonde swept Sasuke's feet out from under him.

While Sakura did not particularly dislike Naruto, she often found him irritating with his obvious crush on her. Especially when his antics disrupted her attempts to talk to Sasuke.

"Uh, guys... you should stop. If our personal instructor arrives and you two are fighting like this-"

Sakura ducked as Sasuke slammed into the wooden bench next to her.

"Hah! Take that, Sasuke!"

"Sasuke-kun..?" murmured Sakura as she watched the dark haired boy's bruised face turn into a scowl. Perhaps it was a trick of light, but for a moment, Sakura could have sworn Uchiha Sasuke's black eyes took on a reddish light. She blinked and Sasuke was no longer next to her, but had rushed at Naruto.

The fight took a turn for the worse when Sasuke and Naruto pulled out kunai and tried to stab each other.

"Sasuke-kun! Naruto!" shrieked Sakura as Sasuke's kunai came very close to Naruto's face, nicking the blonde boy's cheek. "Those kunai are for ancient weaponry class! Stop it!"

Sakura began to run forward when a sudden rush of wind blew her long hair into her view, halting her in her tracks.

When she next took in the scene before her, both Sasuke and Naruto were held away from each other by the collars of their clothes, their kunai on the ground. A tall man with silver grey hair stood between them, his only visible eye in a frown. The man wore the standard jounin-rank military uniform consisting of a long sleeved black military shirt and military issued olive flak-vest.

The man had his Konoha head protector covering his left eye and a mask that hid more than half his face.

"What is the meaning of this?" came his deep voice.

* * *

_Academy Grounds,  
__Training Field # 9  
__Konoha  
__401223_

The next day at the same place, the three team mates reconvened.

Uchiha Sasuke was in a bad mood. He had woken up this morning aching almost everywhere and he sported some large black and blue bruises across his body. Who would have thought that for an idiot, that Uzumaki kid could really pack a wallop.

The sound of footsteps drew his attention away from his pain towards his two team mates arriving on the training field.

Looking up, his eyes took in his blonde team mate and frowned. Was he imagining it, or did Naruto not look as beat up as he was supposed to be? In fact, Sasuke was certain the cut on Naruto's cheek that he had inflicted with his kunai was hardly visible, looking to be at least over a week old.

"Morning, Sasuke-kun!" called Haruno Sakura gaily as she hurried up to his side.

"Morning." mumbled Sasuke as he tried to ignore the girl and continue his examination of the injuries visible on Naruto. It was not that he despised the girl, in fact, her intelligence and analytical skill often impressed him, but her obvious crush, almost to the point of obsession irritated him. The coming two years of intense training was important in his goal for revenge, and he did not need a distracted team mate likely to interfere in his training.

"Mornin' bastard." muttered Naruto as he locked eyes briefly with Sasuke.

"Hnh."

"Why you-"

"Naruto! Stop it! If Kakashi-sensei arrives and catches both of you fighting again..."

That one phrase, effectively ended all and any protests yet to be made by both boys.

* * *

_Three hours later,_

Haruno Sakura, Uchiha Sasuke and Uzumaki Naruto were beyond pissed and irritated. Again, their personal instructor was late and no where to be seen. Conversation between the three, if any to begin with, had long since died a slow and painful death. The only consolation was that because they were living within an enclosed bio-sphere, the temperature hardly ever changed even with the sun glaring down, announcing it to be mid-day.

The growl of a hungry belly interrupted the silence and two pairs of eyes turned to look at the offender. Naruto scratched his messy blonde head, a slight blush blooming on his face.

"What? It's almost lunch... I'm hungry."

Sasuke gave a snort and turned away once more while Sakura sighed shaking her head.

"You're _always_ hungry, Naruto."

"I'm growing! I can't help it!"

Sasuke turned his attention back once more at Naruto's outburst, a smirk gracing his lips.

"For someone who claims to be _growing_, you're pretty _short_ for your age, dumbo."

"WHAT DID YOU SAY, ASS-"

"That was rude, Sasuke-kun."

"It was _only_ the truth..."

"I AM NOT SHORT! I'LL BE TALLER THAN YOU-"

"It's still not something to be said aloud. He could just be a late-bloomer."

"The moron isn't just a _late_-bloomer, he's a no-bloomer."

"BOTH of YOU, STOP talking like I'M NOT HERE, I-"

The sound of wind and rustling leaves distracted the three team mates from their topic of conversation as they turned and found their personal instructor, Hatake Kakashi standing in front of them.

"Yo."

All three were silent for perhaps a fraction of a second, until Naruto shot to his feet, shouting.

"THREE hours! You're late! Late late late late! We've been waiting for _three_ hours, sensei! It's almost lunch time and-"

"Today, before I explain what your two year intense training under me will entail, we're going to play a little game, first." announced Kakashi, effectively ignoring Naruto's outburst.

"What? Hey! Kakashi-sensei, don't ignore me-"

A clenched fist socked Naruto in the face, sending the boy flying backwards a considerable distance to land with a thump.

Sasuke and Kakashi eyed the only girl on the team with some interest.

"I'm sorry, what were you saying, Kakashi-sensei?" asked Sakura sweetly.

Sasuke glanced over his shoulder where Naruto was sitting up, perhaps a good six feet from where he had been previously standing. Sasuke noted that Naruto hardly seemed fazed and in fact was already getting up and walking back towards them.

Shifting his eyes back to the pink-haired girl, he frowned.

"How'd you do that? You didn't even have a running start in that punch to hit him that far..."

Sakura blinked, turning to look at Naruto, then Sasuke. "I have no idea."

Kakashi watched his three students in interest.

It was obvious, Naruto had the ability to heal at a rapid rate. A punch that had knocked an eleven year old to such a distance should have knocked him unconscious as well, and yet, Naruto was wide awake without a bruise to even indicate his face had met anyone's fist.

Moving his gaze to Haruno Sakura, according to her profile, the scientists had created her genome to emulate one of the original Konoha gen-ees. It was obvious which gen-e she had been designed after. The first generation gen-e, Senju Tsunade had the similar ability of superior strength and the capability to augment her strength using kinetic energy.

"Ahem..." coughed Kakashi as he drew the attention of the three children back to him.

"As I was saying, we're going to play a little game."

* * *

The _game_ turned out to be an all out test of their battle skills where the objective was to disable Kakashi and steal the two bells he had, tied to his belt. No tactic or strategy was prohibited. Kakashi had even handed them dart guns with a mild enough anaesthetics where multiple hits would not be lethal. If you were hit in the arm, your arm would go numb, but if you were hit enough times with the drug, you'd lose consciousness.

_"The game ends when the sun starts to go down. Don't hold back, don't worry about injuring me. Because this is _my_ examination on whether you're fit to continue on in intense training. I don't care if you made it through the Academy's general training. If you fail, you're _out_."_

Hidden in the underbrush of number nine's training field, Sakura bit her lip as she remembered Kakashi-sensei's words. His tone of voice had been cold and harsh, his single visible eye, calculating and unblinking.

Well this was a little bump in the road. Kakashi-sensei was a jounin rank and she a mere student, plus, the physical skills had never really been her forte. As she watched Kakashi amble through the clearing, a book-

Wait... a book?

Sakura frowned. He was reading? Now? Sakura felt a little insulted that her sensei would underestimate her team mates. Sasuke, _was_ the top ranked student in the Academy year in terms of physical skills. And Naruto... er...

Well, Naruto had good endurance.

Now she sort of wondered where the two boys were.

Meanwhile, hidden in the leaves, high above the ground, Sasuke also watched the progress of Kakashi as the jounin continued to read his book while walking through the clearing. The calm laid-back attitude the jounin exuded annoyed Sasuke greatly.

He was not going to fail this 'exam'. There was too much at stake. As long as the other two on his team did not get in the way, he could care less where they had hidden themselves.

Settling himself into the crook of his sturdy branch, Sasuke aimed his weapon on Kakashi, waiting for the right moment to squeeze the trigger.

Stilling his breath as Kakashi slowed to a stop, his book still open, but his eye lifting to scan his surroundings, Sasuke slowly curled his finger, beginning to squeeze the trigger when the sudden sound of multiple shots echoed through the trees.

Sasuke could even hear one of the darts bounce off one of the nearby trees.

Such a bad shot could only have been fired by one person...

'Naruto, you dumbass!'

Turning back to look at where Kakashi had once stood, Sasuke cursed in his head. The jounin instructor had disappeared.

'Shit! Where'd he go?' wondered Sasuke.

Down below, hardly hidden by anything at all, Naruto's bright orange and blue jacket stuck out like a sore thumb. The blonde boy cursed as his head continued to swivel about, searching for the jounin instructor.

'Where did Kakashi-sensei go?'

Looking at his gun, Naruto frowned. He only had four shots left of the fifteen round dart cartridge. Maybe he should not have fired those darts the way he did. But he had surmised, surely one of them would have hit Kakashi?

As he stood still contemplating his weapon, a sudden chill went up his spine making the hair on the back of his neck stand on end. Ducking and turning around, he barely missed an attack by Kakashi. Lifting his arm, Naruto fired his gun twice more.

At such a close range, one would have expected a hit.

But strangely, Kakashi's form seemed to flicker and disappear, leaving the darts to hit the trees behind him.

"What?"

'Below!' screamed his mind.

Naruto's gaze went to the speeding form a fraction too late. A fist connected with his gut, driving the air from his lungs with a whoosh.

As he lay gasping for breath on the ground, Naruto groaned. A shadow fell over his vision, blocking out the light overhead.

"You've got good instincts, Naruto. But you're too slow." came Kakashi's flat voice as the jounin raised his own dart weapon. "Looks like you're out of the game."

Kakashi fired five darts into his legs and Naruto knew no more as he blacked out.

* * *

Sasuke cursed as he scanned around for Kakashi. He had heard the gun shots and the crashing of undergrowth. In all likelihood, Naruto was probably out for the count, but then, what had he expected of the class idiot?

"Sasuke-kun."

Sasuke leaped backwards, landing on another sturdy branch. His eyes widening slightly at the sight of Haruno Sakura crouched on the branch he had been on previously.

"Haruno Sakura."

"Have you found, Kakashi-sensei?"

"How did _you_ find me, Haruno?" asked Sasuke as he trained his dart gun on the girl.

Sakura blinked looking back towards Sasuke, her eyes dropping to the gun aimed at her.

"I nearly set off some of your traps just now, and I deduced this would gain you the best vantage point of the traps." she answered. "What are _you_ doing, pointing that thing at me?" she asked pointing at the dart gun.

"This could be a ploy where you're in cahoots with Kakashi."

Sakura blinked again.

"Are you high?"

"What?"

"Anyone ever tell you, you're really paranoid, Sasuke-kun?"

"Being suspicious keeps you alive and alert, Haruno."

"Sakura."

"What?"

"My name is Sakura. Haruno is what they call my mother."

"Oh."

"You didn't answer my question though... have you found Kakashi-sensei? I lost sight of him when Naruto shot at him. But I heard more gunshots moments ago." said Sakura as she continued to scan the ground.

"No, I haven't. That idiot Naruto just had to-"

Sakura hardly had time to blink when Uchiha Sasuke grabbed her off her perch in a sudden movement, both falling into the underbrush below as the trees they were hiding in exploded sending chips of wood raining down onto their heads.

Sakura crushed her inner-fan girl to the back of her mind, trying to ignore the fact that Uchiha Sasuke had just _saved_ her and was practically lying on top of her at the moment.

"What the hell...? Is Kakashi-sensei trying to kill us?" asked Sakura as she avoided looking at Sasuke's face.

"Hnh."

"And he's not playing fair. We didn't get any explosives besides these dart guns." muttered Sakura as she scowled at her hand weapon.

"Sakura."

A sudden movement had both Sakura and Sasuke on the move as he lifted her to her feet and started dragging her along with him.

The sounds of whizzing thuds had Sakura looking over her shoulder to see two darts embedded in the wood where they had just been.

"Sakura, can you tell where the attacks are coming from?" called Sasuke.

"Wait!"

Another thud, this time from a kunai. The jounin instructor was really pushing it.

"Your left! Thirty degrees above us!" called Sakura as her mind easily calculated the trajectory paths of the earlier projectiles and pinpointed the most likely path of pursuit by the jounin.

Sasuke sprang into action as he released her wrist, spinning around as he pushed her forward on the path behind him. He lifted his own dart gun, firing two shots towards the direction Sakura had estimated.

Kakashi dropped from the trees, avoiding both shots.

"Impressive. Even many jounins have difficulty anticipating and pinpointing where an enemy will next appear." praised Kakashi. "But running isn't going to get you the bells."

Sasuke smirked. "Who's running?"

"Oh?"

A flick of his wrist, Uchiha Sasuke released the traps he had carefully set earlier, projectiles flying at the jounin.

As Kakashi dodged the numerous pointy projectiles aimed at his head, Sasuke made his move, rushing towards Kakashi, a foot sweeping in an arc to catch his head.

Almost.

Kakashi saw the leg headed his way and countered with an arm.

Suddenly, Sakura was there, immobilizing the other arm as Sasuke reached down for the bells.

Kakashi cursed as he threw both children off, retreating to a safe distance.

"I didn't need the help, Sakura."

Sakura eyed him silently, the question in her green eyes.

"Alright, a little help, then. But stay behind me, your physical abilities weren't anything to brag about back in the Academy, you know."

"You know, if I didn't think you cute, I'd probably have hit you in the face."

A slight flush appeared on the Uchiha's pale skin before he swung his head away.

Ten minutes later, after two more attempts at immobilizing Kakashi, both Sasuke and Sakura were suffering from their efforts. Sakura had gotten hit in the arm by one of the darts and already, her fingers on the particular arm were feeling numb. Sasuke himself had several cuts and bruises from his attacks on Kakashi.

"The sun will start to set soon, Sasuke-kun. What are we going to do?" asked Sakura as she continued to flex her numb hand, hoping the drug would miraculously wear off. At the moment, her arm felt practically like a dead weight.

"Dammit. If only we had another pair of hands."

"Do you kids want to try once more are you going to forfeit? By my estimate, you kids probably only have less than half an hour left." called Kakashi as he twirled his dart gun in hand.

Sakura and Sasuke did not move from their defensive positions, behind some large trees.

"No? Well, your loss-" began Kakashi when the sudden rustling behind him caught his attention.

'Impossible, did one of them move to circle around me?' wondered Kakashi as he leapt away from the sound of the bush movement.

That was when a short pair of arms latched onto him.

"Hey... sensei." came a raspy chuckle.

* * *

Sasuke was surprised to see Naruto.

In fact, Sasuke had been certain Naruto was down for the count judging from the earlier gun shots and the subsequent absence of Naruto-like blunders and appearances. But surprisingly, the blonde now held onto Kakashi like glue. This was their last and only chance.

Signalling Sakura, both of them joined in on immobilizing Kakashi.

Sasuke went for the legs while Sakura with her good arm, drew her dart gun.

Kakashi toppled at the sudden tackle while he had been trying to pry Naruto off his person.

"Now, Sakura!" shouted Sasuke as he pinned Kakashi as much as he was able using both his hands and legs.

Sakura standing above the pile of struggling limbs, fired her dart gun, three darts hitting Kakashi in both legs and one arm. Kakashi immediately felt the tingling that signalled the spreading numbness of the drug.

Sasuke, free to release his hold on Kakashi jumped to his feet, snatching both bells off the jounin's belt.

"I win." smirked Sasuke.

A cough sounded behind him making Sasuke glance behind his shoulder. Sakura raised an eyebrow, her good hand still holding the dart gun.

"I mean, _we_ win." declared Sasuke as he shared a slight smile.

A groan beneath Kakashi pulled both Sasuke and Sakura's attention back to the jounin.

"That's swell and all... now can somebody get Kakashi-sensei _OFF_ me?" came Naruto's peeved complaint.

Sakura and Sasuke shared a look before laughing. Well, Sakura laughed, Sasuke merely gave a smirk.

* * *

Kakashi rubbed his legs as the numbness wore off having injected himself with a counter-agent to the anaesthetic. Sakura flexed her fingers as the feeling returned to her previously numb arm. In the dying light of the sun, the sensei and his three students sat in silence.

Finally, Kakashi got to his feet stretching.

"Alright. I concede to your skills. The three of you are rough and tumble around the edges, but it appears you have the necessary qualities to survive the coming two years under me, so tomorrow, we will meet at the Konoha Bridge and I will explain what your intense training will entail. Dismissed."

The three children got to their feet, slowly making their way off the training field.

"Naruto."

The short blonde looked up, stopping in his tracks. "Huh?"

"How are you feeling? No dizziness from the drug? Are you certain you don't need the counter-agent?"

Naruto gave a bright grin at his sensei, waving the injection away.

"Naw, I was only out for maybe fifteen minutes according to you guys. Drugs don't really work or affect me for long." shrugged Naruto.

"I see. That's good then. I'll see you tomorrow."

"See ya, Kakashi-sensei!" called Naruto as he ran after Sakura and Sasuke shouting at them to wait for him.

Kakashi watched as the three left, walking towards the Academy building, Naruto was once again arguing one-sidedly with Sasuke while Sakura looked on laughing.

"Drugs don't work, huh?" mused Kakashi to himself as the trio disappeared from his sight.

Looking down at the darts in his hands, Kakashi gave a wry smile.

"Five of these darts should have put him out for at least an hour and a half judging by his body mass, and yet, he shrugged it off in a sixth of the time it should have taken for it to wear off. That's some immune system." muttered Kakashi as he scratched his head in resignation.

* * *

_Wave Nation  
__430615_

Two years intense training apparently meant two years of actual in-the-field combat missions under their assigned jounin instructor. Most of the time, these missions took the trainees away from the safety of Konoha's bio-sphere. There were no theories to memorize, no books to study. There was only hands-on practical survival skills.

This suited Uchiha Sasuke and Uzumaki Naruto just fine. In fact, both boys seemed to revel in the constant danger and excitement of a real life situation to the point where while both boys still argued, a sort of companionable kinship emerged between both of them. Often, the boys seemed to be communicating mentally when attacking an opponent together.

Their two years with Kakashi-sensei were almost up. In fact, they had just completed their last mission and would be returning to Konoha where their two years would be officially over.

As the three males on her team talked or in Naruto and Sasuke's case bickered by the flickering firelight, Sakura watched slightly envious of the easy rapport her two peers seemed to share despite their constant denials of friendship. They frequently reminded her of mirror images. When one moved, so did the other. While she stayed still.

Sakura frowned as she watched them from her protective bio-tent. Oh, she had learned new things and skills. Her strange strength had grown, she had even received training as a field medic, being the only one of three with any potential in medical skills. And yet, she still felt stationary. Unmoving. Naruto and Sasuke were still the heavy hitters of the team, always pushing her back.

Who knew being constantly protected felt like crap?

Naruto caught sight of her and broke into a smile, beckoning her to join them by the fire. Sasuke looked her way, an easy relaxed expression on his face as he watched her. Kakashi was engrossed in his pornographic book as always.

The three of them had in their curiosity of Kakashi's constant fascination with said book, pinched the book in their early days under Kakashi's tutelage. The book had been promptly returned less than an hour later by the three of them, red-faced over the book's content.

Adjusting and switching on her personal environmental field, Sakura left her bio-tent and took her place beside her team mates by the fire. Sakura offered a smile at both boys as Naruto grinned at her and promptly returned to bicker with Sasuke and at the same time, badger Kakashi.

As she pushed her long hair out of the way, she felt a hand brush at it and looked up. Her eyes locked with the black of Sasuke's, his arm raised towards her head, a stray leaf in his hand.

"You had this in your hair." muttered Sasuke as he lifted the leaf as if to show it off.

"Thanks."

"Hnh."

That single sound brought a laugh to her lips and for the time being, Sakura forgot about her insecurities.

* * *

It was quiet with only the popping of the fire to break the silence. Naruto stared out at the murky grey brown of the open sky. Things really were very different outside the bio-sphere. Hardly any plants grew and any that did were more like dry brown weeds than anything else. The ground was hard and dry. Even the air was slightly toxic that if a human was not wearing protective gear and an environmental field, skin would begin to blister and burn.

Naruto mused silently to himself as he watched Sasuke and Sakura sit in a comfortable silence, a smile ghosting over his lips. The two years the three of them had spent together had undoubtedly changed the relationships between them.

Sasuke was not as hard or as distant, in fact, Naruto sort of enjoyed the barbs and rivalry that had passed between them these last two years. While it seemed as if both could find no good words to say to each other, there was no one Naruto would rather have at his back when they fought in battle. There was still a sort of darkness and anger within him though, the same burning he saw in the dark boy's eyes that first day they had met. Naruto knew it was this burning that often had Sasuke training, pushing himself.

Sakura still lectured both boys when they got into scrapes with each other, often voicing her displeasure at having to patch both of them up so frequently. The two years had not dimmed his thoughts about her. She was still beautiful to him and Naruto really liked being around her even if she did not see him in any romantic sense. The two years however, had blunted her obvious infatuation with Uchiha Sasuke, leaving a sort of, in Naruto's eyes anyway, quiet affection that she expressed with looks and private musings as she patched Sasuke up from the injuries he received when training.

Their changes were probably most reflected with Kakashi-sensei. Naruto watched in the corner of his eye as the jounin continued to flip through his perverted book. Kakashi had sort of become the parent in their group, offering guidance in not just military skills, but other daily mundane details as well. It felt a bit strange to think that their time together was coming to a close.

Then there was himself. Naruto scratched his cheek in amusement. He was usually asleep at this time of night, but tonight, he was wide awake. Many things had changed since he had been a child in the orphanage. After being adopted by Umino Iruka, his other half had slowly gone silent. He had then begun to laugh more, play pranks, make friends. These two years had changed him once again. His other half now whispered to him again, offering suggestions and at times, dark malicious thoughts he never imagined would have existed in his mind.

'Kyuubi...'

* * *

_Main Gate,  
__Konoha  
__430620_

They had finally returned to Konoha. Pale eyes watched as the teams led by the jounins, Hatake Kakashi and Sarutobi Asuma strolled through the bio-sphere's gate. Both adults were chatting amicably while their six students were either talking quietly or arguing, in the case of Sakura, Ino, Naruto and Sasuke.

Hyuuga Hinata watched the group bicker, her eyes drawn towards the blonde boy of Kakashi's Team Seven. Hinata loved watching Naruto, his confidence and unwavering will a beacon shining like the sun to her eyes. His personality so different from her own, she was often comforted by the kindness and optimism he showed others.

She was after all, just the shy soft-spoken heiress of the Hyuuga clan who had required constant training and effort to maintain a standard that was satisfactory to her father.

So, she hid behind a large tree, drinking in the sight of Uzumaki Naruto whom she probably had not seen in half a year. Though her own team had returned to Konoha for almost two months, Naruto's own team had been away for more than three.

"Why don't you just go and greet them?" asked a matter-of-fact voice behind her.

Hinata jumped as she turned to find her team mate, Aburame Shino standing beside her, hands in his windcheater pockets.

A blush started up Hinata's face at the idea of even going up towards Naruto and greeting the blonde. Her fingers pushing together in a nervous gesture, a habit she had picked up over the course of her two years with her team mates and instructor, Yuuhi Kurenai.

"We don't know th-them very we-well, Shino-kun." murmured Hinata, her head hanging low.

"Every relationship needs to begin somewhere." stated Shino.

A full blown blush turned Hinata's face red that Shino was sure her ears would start steaming any moment.

"R-R-Re-Relationship?" squeaked Hinata.

The dark haired girl then proceeded to faint.

* * *

_Academy,  
__Assembly Hall  
__Konoha  
__430627_

Yamanaka Ino stood in the Assembly Hall of Konoha's Academy of Military Arts, rubbing her head as the buzzing in her mind seemed to grow louder. What had started out as an occasional peep of sound as a child was now often a constant irritating buzz. The two years she had spent training under her instructor, Sarutobi Asuma had not helped either. If she had to compare, she would have said the buzzing had grown worse.

But there were times when she could almost make out voices in the incomprehensible buzzing that plagued her mind. She was not sick, tests from years ago had determined nothing wrong with her health.

"Are you alright?" came a lazy voice.

Concentrating on the voice of her childhood friend, the buzzing in her head subsided and disappeared. Giving a sigh, Ino turned and waved her team mate off. As long as she concentrated on one voice, the buzzing would not return.

"I'm fine, Shikamaru. Don't worry."

The boy rolled his eyes. "I don't need you fainting or anything. I'm always the one who has to carry you to the infirmary when that happens. So troublesome." muttered Nara Shikamaru.

Ino frown and swatted him in the head before returning her attention to the front.

Watching the activity of the instructors in the front, she became curious as to what was to happen, now that they had survived and completed their two year stint under their personal instructors. The hall was packed with students standing at attention, their faces turned to the front, intent on listening to the speech given out by the Academy Instructors. Looking around, Ino noted there were many more students than the original teams of her year that had left on their training two years prior. In fact, some of the teams in her year were missing.

Her thoughts came to a halt however when her eyes landed on the members of Team Seven.

Uchiha Sasuke had grown taller from the last time she had seen him. As she admired his profile, she quickly realized who the dark eyed boy was talking to. No one could mistake that long pink hair on the girl by his side.

Ino wanted to stamp her foot in irritation.

Haruno Sakura or Forehead as Ino liked to call her, was happily conversing with Sasuke as if they were close friends.

Which they probably were.

Both were on the same team and had spent two years in each other's company after all.

Some girls really had all the luck.

* * *

Hyuuga Neji was restless. He disliked this large congregation of students. In fact, he disliked how he knew a portion of the students in the crowd had only to complete the required two years before their personal instructors had cleared them for graduation. He himself had wanted to finish the course in the relegated two years. But his instructor, Maito Gai had thought it best for them to continue on with him another year.

His only female team mate peeked at him, her face worried.

"Neji, are you alright?"

"I'm fine."

"Look at it this way, Neji. The two-year graduates aren't spectacularly capable. Their instructors are just lazy." grinned Tenten.

Neji almost smiled. Almost.

"It's a comforting thought, but I doubt that. One of the graduating teams are the students of Gai's 'arch-rival', whom he's never been able to defeat."

"That's-"

"Welcome back to the Academy and many felicitations on making it this far past your intense training." came the voice of an instructor.

Neji and Tenten fell silent as they turned to view the instructor who had spoken. The man looked slightly pale with dark circles beneath his drooping eyes.

Coughing once, the instructor continued his speech.

"You are here today to be briefed on your final exam."

Tenten turned to look at Neji as she mouthed in confusion. Final exam?

Neji shook his head in a shrug as murmurs and whispers broke out among the many students as they realized they were perhaps only potential graduates and not actually graduating.

"The exam will encompass many other military students from ally or peaceful bio-spheres, lasting a total of one week. This year, Konoha will be hosting the exam and as such, will open its gates to outsiders. The actual exam however will be held outside the bio-sphere..."

The instructor had another coughing fit as many students were now worried and agitated.

"Excuse me... as I was saying. The exam is to take place outside the bio-sphere in the Forest of Death."

Loud exclamations were heard all around as many students turned to face team mates and their neighbours.

Neji however was silent even as his other team mate, Rock Lee was cheered in excitement much to the disbelief of other students standing about them. As Tenten looked on, scrutinizing his face, a slow smirk made its way across his lips.

"Well this just turned interesting." smiled Neji, his white eyes meeting Tenten's brown in anticipation.

"Settle down, kiddies. You all heard right." came another instructor's voice. This time, the man who spoke was a healthy looking man with chin length hair in a bandana and what looked like a senbon in his mouth.

"The Forest of Death. Welcome to the Graduation exam." grinned the man.

* * *

To be continued...

This is a really long chapter. I never expected the scene with Team Seven and Kakashi to take up practically the whole thing... my mind just spits out the words that follows the scene playing out in my brain. It's so tough trying to coordinate a scene when a character jumps in my head and proceeds to do whatever the hell they want.

**Next Chapter: The Forest of Death**

09/0710

Note: My answer to your queries in the reviews is posted on my profile page.


	4. Chapter 3: The Forest of Death

**THE SHINOBI PROJECT**

by Tap-Chan

Disclaimer: Kishimoto owns Naruto

**Note:** As I was writing this chapter, I realized the year of Team Seven's return to Konoha would have only made their training one and a half years. So I have revised the dates by a year and done the same to chapter 2. So the calendar now is the year 43. Two and a half years since they all left the Academy to continue under their personal instructors.

**Chapter 3: The Forest of Death**

_Academy,  
__Konoha  
__430627_

After being briefed on how the exam worked, the students filed slowly out of the assembly hall, many looking quite worried. There were even some who looked green in the face at the thought of the Forest of Death.

Naruto scowled at his pamphlet that every student had received from the instructors.

"And here I thought we were done with everything and would officially be graduating." grumbled the blonde petulantly. "Look at this! A theory exam on the first day!" muttered Naruto as he continued to flip through the pamphlet and the information it contained.

"Well, that's trouble for you right there, idiot." came Sasuke's snide retort. "You suck at theory."

"Hey! I'll have you know I can memorize every single title in Kakashi-sensei's collection of books."

Sakura frowned. "What's _that_ got to do with anything?"

"Sasuke-bastard said my memory sucked!"

Sakura blinked before turning her confused gaze on Sasuke.

Sasuke merely gave her a shrug. "I rest my case. He's not only an idiot. He's a perverted idiot."

"You were looking at those book titles too, asshole. I wouldn't be surprised if you used your weird red-eye thingy that you got last year, on it too."

Sasuke froze at the mention of his eyes.

"Naruto!" hissed Sakura.

Naruto scratched a cheek awkwardly. "Uh, I mean..." Naruto swallowed as he looked at Sakura and then at no one in particular trying to think of something to say.

"It's obvious lack of intelligence when you can't even finish a sentence."

"Yeah! I mean- hey!" exclaimed Naruto. "I'm just hungry is all." protested Naruto as his shoulders relaxed at the change of topic Sasuke had afforded them.

"Uh-huh."

"It's true! Let's get to the town already. I haven't had Ichiraku's ramen in months." called Naruto as he started off ahead.

As Sasuke shook his head and started forward, a tug on the back of his shirt stopped him. Turning to look over his shoulder, he saw Sakura's slim hand attached to the hem of his shirt.

The girl was looking down at her own hand, her pink hair hiding her face from view.

"Sakura?"

Sakura looked up, her eyes locking with Sasuke's own. Two seconds passed before she abruptly released her grip, looking away towards Naruto, a nervous smile on her face.

"Naruto's such an idiot. Ramen's the only thing he thinks of every time we come home to Konoha." babbled Sakura. "We should follow after him before he starts a ruckus." she laughed as she started to move off towards the direction Naruto was in.

As Sasuke watched his two team mates walk ahead of him, he gave a shake of his head.

"Sakura."

The pink-haired girl stopped, turning her head to look at him as he caught up with her.

"Huh?"

"Don't worry." commanded Sasuke as he knocked lightly on her forehead with the back of his hand, flashing a small smile.

As both team mates walked in silence after Naruto, Sasuke's thoughts moved backwards to the events resulting in the manifestation of his red eyes.

* * *

One year prior on a mission in Water Nation, Sasuke had encountered a wandering deserter on his way back to his team mates. Said wandering deserter had promptly attacked him with no given reason other than what Sasuke assumed must be insanity.

The attacker's skin had been ice cold and favoured the ancient use of senbon rather than the modern hand gun. The senbon themselves had been so cold that the many that had pierced his flesh had felt like burning needles as the icy chill seared through his nerves leaving numbness.

Also, the attacker's speed had surprised Sasuke with its startling frenzy, faster than even Kakashi who Sasuke thought moved like liquid quicksilver.

Sasuke had nearly died in that battle if not for the manifestation of his red eyes and the timely arrival of his team mates.

He remembered Sakura bent over him, frantically patching up his injuries, tears falling from her eyes to land on the skin of his cheek.

The vague recollection of a furious Naruto attacking his assailant at the sight of his wounds.

But the memory that was burned into his mind was the whispered dying words of the boy that was the wanderer.

_"Red eyes... Gen-E... like me."_

Sasuke had flinched at his words and the reference to his eyes. His mind flying back to that horrible night and the eyes of his brother.

After they had buried the boy and his injuries bandaged by Sakura, Kakashi had pulled him aside to speak privately with him.

Kakashi had explained his red eyes were a genetic trait found in his family, the Uchiha, called the Sharingan. An ability that had been carefully bred and cultivated throughout the ages of his family's history. His eyes apparently had the ability to estimate and predict movement patterns, allowing for his brain to receive visual information faster than any other living human, allowing for a faster reaction time. His eyes also gained him a photographic memory when used, allowing him to copy and mimic any movements or skills by others along with an immunity and natural skill for hypnotism.

While Kakashi had not explained what the term 'Gen-E' had meant, Sasuke had not felt the need to ask either, the words of his brother thwarting all intention.

_"We're not 'natural-born'."_

Besides, there was hardly any need to dwell on the words of a crazy dying drifter. Since that incident a year ago, his 'Sharingan' had not manifested itself again despite his attempts to do so.

Sudden shouts from the front gate of the Academy broke through his thoughts as he recognized one of the voices to be Naruto's.

"What's going on? What has that moron gone and done now?" asked Sasuke as he turned to look at the companion by his side.

His team mate Sakura bit her lip, shaking her head. "I don't know, Naruto just suddenly ran off ahead. C'mon."

* * *

_Academy,  
__Front Gate  
__Konoha  
__430627_

Hyuuga Hinata watched on with growing horror as her cousin, Hyuuga Neji and the boy she had a crush on, Uzumaki Naruto started arguing with each other, Naruto's voice rising in volume the longer he continued on. She almost wished the scene in front of her was some distorted waking dream and all she had to do to make it stop was to wake up.

It had all started with her running into her cousin, Neji and her ending up on her backside on the ground.

The boy, older than her by a year had looked down, eyebrows raised as a slight expression of confusion and shock crept across his features. The expression had almost immediately turned cold and hard though as he stared his nose down at her as if she were a bug.

_"Hinata-sama, what a surprise."_

_"Neji-nii-san." trembled Hinata._

_"You're participating in the graduation exam as well?"_

_"Y-Yes..."_

_"Your personal instructor must be insane or lazy. I've seen your skills whenever you're back at the compound. I can't imagine how your instructor deemed _you_ ready." sneered Neji in derision._

Naruto appeared then almost immediately, standing in front of her in a belligerent pose, demanding her cousin apologize for his 'rude bastard-like' attitude and speech. Neji had eyed him contemptuously before proceeding to ignore the blonde, turning to walk away.

That had been the point where Naruto had thrown his shoe at the back of Neji's head.

The situation had then deteriorated down hill from there, with both Naruto and Neji spitting threats at each other, both looking ready for a fight.

Hinata looked around, searching for help. Where were Shino and Kiba?

The boy at her cousin's side tried to urge Neji away but her cousin merely shrugged him off.

"Neji, let's go. Don't do this."

"Yeah, go on like the asshole coward you are, _Neji_." sneered Naruto.

"Leave off, Rock Lee. You may be my team mate, but I don't answer to _you_. The fool is asking for it, anyway."

The girl by the boy called Rock Lee's side gave a sigh, her head shaking. "Why do you bother, you know he never listens to you, Lee."

"Naruto! What in Konoha are you doing?" came a shout from behind.

Hinata turned and almost breathed a sigh of relief as she saw Naruto's team mates approach. If there was anybody Naruto listened to, it was his team mates. Especially Haruno Sakura.

* * *

As both Sasuke and Sakura reached the group, Sasuke noted Naruto's shouting opponent appeared to be a member of the Hyuuga clan. The boy had to be the Hyuuga prodigy he had heard of when he had first entered the Academy.

Turning his gaze on Naruto who was still locked in a glare with the Hyuuga boy, Sasuke gave an exasperated mental sigh at the blonde's actions. The idiot always went picking fights with people bigger than him.

"Naruto, what in blazes are you trying to do? Are you _asking_ for Kakashi-sensei or one of the Academy's instructors to bust your head?" reprimanded Sakura as she caught the blonde's ear in a death grip.

"Ow! Sakura-chan!"

"Sakura's right, you idiot. They told us no trouble."

"If they decide to revoke your right to the graduation exam, Kakashi-sensei is going to murder you." continued Sakura as she continued to pull the blonde away by his ear.

"Okay, Oo-kAY! Ow! Ow! Sakura-chan, my ear!" whimpered Naruto.

As Sasuke turned to follow his team mates, they were stopped by the voice of the Hyuuga boy.

"Hey! You!"

Sasuke stopped in his tracks as did Sakura and Naruto, as Sakura still had Naruto's ear in her grip. The blonde tried to turn his head to glare at the Hyuuga, failing miserably with his ear caught in Sakura's fingers.

Turning to look over his shoulder, Sasuke narrowed his eyes at the Hyuuga.

"You three are the students of Hatake Kakashi?"

"What of it?" answered Sasuke.

"What's your name?"

Twisting around the gaze at the Hyuuga, Sasuke's eyes narrowed further. "If you want _my_ name, you should state _yours_ first. It's common courtesy."

"I'm Hyuuga Neji."

Sasuke smirked. "Uchiha Sasuke."

"And I'm Uzumaki Naruto!" shouted Naruto.

"Shut up, Naruto!" hissed Sakura as she twisted his ear further.

"Ow! But Sakura-chan, Sasuke-bastard - OW! Shit!"

"Uchiha..." murmured Neji. "I've heard you're the best of your year. I look forward to seeing your skills."

Sasuke smirked.

Before Sasuke could reply, a familiar voice broke the tension.

"Hmm, what are you three doing?"

"Kakashi-sensei!" exclaimed Naruto.

"Oya, why are you pulling Naruto by the ear, Sakura?" mused Kakashi as he noticed his two students.

"Because Naruto was being an idiot." muttered Sakura as she released her team mate's ear. Naruto stood up from his formerly bent position, rubbing his abused ear as he shot dirty looks at Hyuuga Neji.

"Come along, Sasuke. I believe it's lunch time." called Kakashi as he pulled his book out from his pouch. "And I suggest the rest of you disband your little party as well." he continued cheerily before his tone of voice changed, his single eye going from a warm cheer to a flat cold look in seconds.

"There will be _no_ trouble from any of you before the exam. You want to settle your disagreements with a fight, you do so during the exam. Not before. Is that clear?"

"Yes, sir." bowed Neji in deference.

Kakashi turned to stare at his team, eyebrow raised.

Sasuke merely gave a snort, turning his head away.

Naruto hung his head. "Yes, sensei."

"Wonderful. Now that we're done here, let's go." smiled Kakashi as he flipped open his book and proceeded to exit the Academy gates.

Sakura sighed and followed after her sensei as Sasuke shrugged, his feet moving in Kakashi's direction.

"C'mon Naruto! Let's go!" called Sakura.

Naruto moved to follow before spinning back to face Neji and his team mates, a finger pointing at the Hyuuga boy.

"We're not done with this. But Kakashi-sensei is right! So I'll wait to kick your butt in the Forest of Death!" declared Naruto in a huff before turning back and running after his team.

Neji narrowed his eyes after the disappearing team.

"You're right. We're not done. Not by a long shot." whispered Neji to himself before turning in the other direction to stalk off. "Let's go. We have to meet Gai-sensei." said Neji as he ignored his cousin.

Tenten started to follow after her cranky team mate and stopped when she noticed her other team mate, Rock Lee stood stock still, staring in the direction the other team led by Hatake Kakashi had disappeared in.

"Lee?"

"She was so pretty..."

"Huh?"

"The girl who was filled with the powerful spirit of youth!" exclaimed Lee.

"Lee, really... you're sounding more like Gai-sensei everyday. It's creepy." sighed Tenten.

Lee ignored Tenten's words, turning to the still quiet Hinata.

"Say, who was she?" asked Lee as he pointed in the direction Team Seven had disappeared to.

Hinata gave a jolt, "Wh-What?"

"She, the pink-haired youthful beauty!"

Hinata blinked.

"Pink- you mean Sakura-chan?"

"Sakura! Sakura-san..." exclaimed Lee as he turned back to stare in the empty direction, his eyes burning with some unnamed intensity that had Hinata edging away from the obviously enthusiastic, if somewhat odd, boy.

A distant shout for Hinata caught the Hyuuga girl's attention as she locked eyes with Tenten a scant second before bowing politely and scampering away, a sigh of relief on her lips at the sound of her team mate, Inuzuka Kiba's voice.

Tenten sighed and turned her attention back to Lee who was still spouting his praises about the Sakura-girl and of youth and flaming determination.

With a sigh of defeat, Tenten snagged Lee by the collar of his ugly green jumpsuit and dragged him off in the direction Neji had gone.

"Yes, Lee. She's pretty. She's got youthful pink hair. Now, shut up."

Really, why were her team mates either half insane or just plain insane?

* * *

_Ichiraku Ramen,  
__Konoha  
__430628_

It was the next day and again, Team Seven found themselves sitting in Naruto's favourite shop in the whole of Konoha. Ichiraku Ramen, a small ramen restaurant just as they had done the day before.

Sakura watched in disgust as Naruto all but inhaled his third bowl of ramen before wolfing it down, his undisguised slurping of the noodle broth especially loud in her head. Naruto was once again holding the exam pamphlet and flipping through its pages.

"S'hay, Shha-kura-chy-an..." mumbled Naruto between a mouthful of noodles.

"Naruto, that's disgusting. Don't talk to me with your mouth full."

The blonde grinned sheepishly before swallowing his mouthful and tried again.

"Sorry. I was gonna ask, this place they're holding the exam is that big ol' dark forest outside the bio-sphere, right near the outskirts right?"

"That's right. The Forest of Death." nodded Sakura as she took a slow sip of her tea.

"Why's it called that anyway?"

Sasuke at the other side of Sakura, stopped his chopsticks from his lips in mid bite of a kamaboko to turn his attention on Naruto.

"You really didn't read the textbooks in general ed, did you, idiot."

"Those books were really boring!"

"This shows why you're retarded."

Sakura sighed as she rubbed her head. "You two fight like a married couple. Sasuke-kun, stop baiting him. Both of you are shouting in my ears."

Sasuke gave a soft 'hnh' before turning back to his meal.

"And Naruto, you really should brush up on Konoha's general education. The Forest of Death is called that, simply because it's just that. A forest of death. Notice that it's outside of our bio-sphere, but it's not dead or dying like most of the vegetation we saw in our travels with Kakashi-sensei. It's a mutated forest that was created as a deterrent of our borders back in the early days of the first War of Nations. Konoha's surrounded by a mountain on one side after all, but the area where the forest is was empty. Vulnerable to attack." explained Sakura.

"So they made a forest?"

"Yeah... thing is, the forest kind of grew in a way no one really predicted. The text book says it's twice as big as the area that was seeded to grow it, and that most of the plants in the place are either carnivorous or poisonous. Really unpredictable. Also, I think in the last few decades, many of the mutated beasts have made their homes there."

Naruto blinked, staring at Sakura, his mouth open, slack jawed.

"Anyway, since the end of the war and the fact that it's near impossible to get rid of all the dangerous things in the forest, it's usually off limits. But apparently, now they use it as an exam ground." muttered Sakura as she chewed on one of her dango skewers.

"Hey, if it's so dangerous, wouldn't there have been people who died in this?" asked Naruto.

Sasuke looked over at Naruto, catching the blonde's eye, a smirk gracing his lips.

"What's to say there hasn't been any deaths before?"

"But it's an _exam_..."

Sakura shook her head. "Naruto, you _do_ realize that in the last two years...we could have died any time then?"

"That's different. Kakashi-sensei was there." nodded Naruto tightly, though it was obvious the blonde had become slightly uncomfortable at the thought.

"Well, I guess this is what the exam is about then. If you really _can_ survive. After all, a sensei can't be there beside you forever." mused Sakura aloud.

"Hmm... fatal exam. You pass if you survive. If you don't..." Sasuke trailed off with another smirk.

Naruto looked suitably horrified.

* * *

_Main Square  
__Konoha,  
__430701_

It was three days later when the foreign examinees began to arrive, like a steady trickle from their respective bio-spheres. Activity within the military sector increased, bustling like a hive of busy bees as accommodations were prepared, cleaned and security installed.

Sitting in the shade of a large tree, Team Seven watched the many examinees passed them by on their way towards the designated accommodations within Konoha's military bases.

"This is boring. Why'd Kakashi-sensei ask us to wait here?" exclaimed Naruto in annoyance. There were many things he'd rather be doing at the moment. Eating ramen, training or even trying to sneak into that "_adult's only"_ section at the bookstore. He had to work hard to beat that white-eyed Neji's hoity-toity attitude after all. Watching the multitude of examinees enter Konoha was hardly fascinating nor battle enlightening.

Sasuke spared a disinterested glance over towards Naruto before flicking his eyes back to the crowd, his hand constantly flipping a pebble he had picked off the ground. While he rarely agreed with Naruto, this was one time he had to concur. Watching the examinees did not really serve any purpose as this was neither about security or surveillance. There were plenty of soldiers watching and observing the outsiders, his eyes finding each and every Konoha soldier, disguised or hidden.

He would rather preferred to have been training.

On a higher branch, Sakura bit her lip as her fingers twisted her long hair together, her eyes watching the many outsiders as they passed by the tree they were in. Many looked fairly intimidating and much older than herself and the others. Her eyes ever so often flicked over to the top of Sasuke's head before skipping away to stare at some distant object or person. Glancing at Naruto's irritated expression, Sakura sighed, releasing her hair to rest her chin on her hands. Both her team mates were so relaxed and unperturbed by the ever encroaching date of the exam, while she on the other hand was greatly insecure.

Another half hour passes by and Naruto unable to sit patiently any longer, drops to the ground from his perch in the tree, startling several civilians.

"Naruto!"

"This is stupid. I bet Kakashi-sensei won't even show up for another hour and I'm hungry." complained the blonde.

"Your stomach is _always_ hungry! I bet it's because you only eat ramen!" snapped Sakura as she jumped off her branch and landed on the branch once occupied by Naruto and Sasuke.

"I imagine you'll starve to death during the exam."

Sasuke eyed his team mate lazily. "Leave the idiot alone, Sakura. Who cares if he goes and stuffs his face with his noodle broth."

"Hah, see. Even Sasuke-bastard agrees this waiting around here is pointless."

Sasuke smirked as his hand tossed the little pebble once again. However, before it landed in the palm of his hand, another hand had already caught the little grey stone.

"Hey, so you three are examinees as well?" came a voice.

Sakura turned from glaring at Naruto and came face to face with a teenager dressed in black, his face painted and hanging upside down as he eyed the little pebble he had pinched out of Sasuke's hand.

Sakura gave a little screech as she back-pedalled from the stranger, losing her footing from the branch, starting her backward fall downwards.

"Sakura!"  
"Sakura-chan!"

Sasuke cursed and pulled the weapon he had grown to favour in the last two years, an ebony black kunai blade connected to one of his pouches by sturdy thin wire, from its holster, throwing it to attach to a branch as he swung to catch one of the falling girl's arms. A grunt of pain escaped his lips as her weight coupled with gravity jerked at his arm.

Naruto at the bottom of the tree, moved from foot to foot in anxious worry as he watched his two team mates dangle in the air suspended by only Sasuke's strength and a thin wire.

"Are you alright, Sakura-chan!" hollered Naruto.

"Yeah. I'm alright. Sasuke-kun, are you alright?"

"Hnh."

"Hey, you asshole! What do you think you're doing! You could have gotten Sakura-chan hurt!" shouted Naruto from below.

Sakura was about to shout at Naruto for calling Sasuke names until she realized the blonde was glaring at the foreign boy on the branch who was now right side up and watching them from his squatting position on said branch.

"Hey, it's not my fault she's so useless to be surprised by such a little thing." shrugged the black hooded boy. Sakura observed the teenager and speculated that he was perhaps slightly older than their own fourteen. Well, fourteen for herself alone as both Sasuke and Naruto had yet to celebrate their fourteenth birthdays.

As Sasuke released both of them safely to the ground, Sakura watched as he glared at the teen in the tree.

"Judging from your symbol, you're from Suna in Wind Nation." stated Sasuke as he nodded at the teen's hood.

"Uh-huh. That's right. I'm here for the exam. But what's three pip-squeaks like you doing in the exam? You can't have finished your training yet." mused the teen.

"You will apologize to Sakura."

The teen blinked. "What?"

"Sasuke-kun, leave it. He's right, I shouldn't have reacted that badly." said Sakura as she tugged on his sleeve.

"Bastard is right, Sakura-chan! He needs to apologize!" exclaimed Naruto.

"Not you too. I'm fine. Just leave it. No trouble, remember?" hissed Sakura as she tried to pull both her team mates away from the foreigner.

As both boys gave her a mutinous glare, Sakura glared back. "I said, _leave it_. I still know how to disable you with pressure points."

With one last glare at the teen, both boys followed after Sakura in angry silence.

"Hey! Wait!" called the teen.

The trio ignored him, with Sakura pulling at both boys.

"Hey! I said wait! What? So she calls the shots does she? You Konoha types are such pansy losers-" began the teen but was cut off when a sharp kunai embedded itself in the wood beside his head.

The teen blinked as he was suddenly practically nose to nose with the dark-eyed Uchiha, a hand gripping the kunai that was next to his head.

"Please, _continue_." came Sasuke's chilly voice.

"Sasuke-kun!"

"Hey! No fair, bastard! I want a shot at him too!"

"Naruto!"

The teen reacted, putting distance between himself and Sasuke. "What the hell, how did-"

Sasuke followed after him, throwing several senbon.

The senbon never made their mark as an iron fan or _tessen_, intercepted the needles with audible clinks, dropping to the ground.

"What are you doing, Kankurou?" came a husky feminine voice.

* * *

Sasuke studied the new-comer. She was slightly taller and maybe a year older than the other teen she had called Kankurou, with dark green eyes and dirty blonde hair. She was glaring at Kankurou, a hand on her hip as the other tapped a steady tattoo on her thigh with another _tessen_.

"You were supposed to ask for directions. Not pick on kids." snapped the girl.

"But Temari-"

"Can't you do a _simple_ task?" continued the girl called Temari as she bent swiftly to collect the _tessen_ she had thrown to intercept his senbon.

Sasuke heard muffled sounds behind him and raised an eyebrow as he noted Sakura had Naruto's head in a headlock and one hand over his mouth as the blonde struggled, most likely to vehemently protest the 'kids' bit.

The two Suna teens continued to bicker when a chill shot down Sasuke's spine. He noticed both teens and Naruto had gone silent as well. A short boy around their age with dark red hair stepped out behind a tree, his pale green eyes seemed almost empty as he frowned at the two Suna teens.

"Gaara-"

"You're taking too long." came the boy's flat statement.

"We were just going to ask for directions, Gaara." said the Temari girl, her voice placating. Turning towards him, Sasuke noted the girl blinked, giving him a second look before nodding.

"From the symbols you're wearing, I'll hazard and say you three are in the Military Arts, we're examinees from Suna and we were wondering if you knew where Base Tower 8 is."

"That way, turn left on the second junction and straight on." answered Sakura as she released Naruto's mouth to point in a direction.

"Kids? Kids?" shouted Naruto at last.

"Shut up, idiot. You're too noisy. "

"But Sasuke! We're examinees just like they are! We're not kids anymore!" exclaimed Naruto heatedly.

Temari did a double take as she stared at the three of them. "You're kind of short to be over fifteen aren't you?"

"That's cause I'm not! I'll be fourteen this year!"

Sasuke was beginning to get a headache from all of Naruto's idiocy.

"Fourteen? Don't they start you kids older here? That's what I heard anyway..."

"What about him?" asked Naruto as he pointed towards Gaara.

"Gaara's different-"

"Let's go." came the redhead's voice.

"Leave them alone, Temari. Who cares why they're in the exam. They were probably _bored_ with their life." muttered Kankurou spitefully.

Sasuke's black eyes caught Kankurou's and the Suna teen shut up as he noted the cold flat look on the dark-haired teen's face. Having faced the Uchiha's speed once, Kankurou was not in a hurry for another demonstration.

Gaara watched the scene, his face hardly changing.

"Problem?" came a voice.

"Kakashi-sensei!" exclaimed Sakura in relief.

"Hello brats." said Kakashi fondly as he patted Sakura on the head. "Sasuke?"

"Sensei." acknowledged Sasuke. "There's no problem." he continued as he spun on his heel and stuffed his clenched fists into his pockets, walking away.

Kakashi watched his dark haired student walk off before turning back to the foreign examinees.

"Accommodations for examinees are that way, chuunins are stationed at the base gates to help you find your way. I trust that there has been no trouble here."

The short redhead was still staring after Sasuke but at Kakashi's query, gave the jounin a cursory glance before sauntering off in the direction of the base.

"Gaara, wait!" called the other male teen.

Temari merely nodded. "Our thanks, there has been no trouble." she answered before turning to catch up to her team.

* * *

The next two days saw many more foreign examinees pouring in from the four corners of the land and finally, on the third day with over two hundred teams present, the Graduation Exam officially commenced.

The first day of the exam consisting of written theory passed by with relative peace with hardly any trouble other than a fight that broke out between Uchiha Sasuke and Rock Lee, two hours prior to the start of the exam. According to Naruto, the 'Fuzzy Brows' had attempted to hit on Sakura which promptly had Sasuke dragging them away to head towards the assembly room.

Rock Lee had then proceeded to challenge Sasuke in hand to hand combat, ending in Sasuke's defeat.

_Base Camp  
Area 44,  
Konoha Perimeter  
430705_

It was only the second day of the exam and Hyuuga Neji watched the remaining examinees with flat disinterested eyes. Of the teams that had enrolled for the exam, a total of a hundred teams had passed the theory exam. Still too many in Neji's opinion.

His eyes narrowed as he found the form of his cousin and the Hyuuga heiress, Hyuuga Hinata, huddled together with her team mates, her eyes wide, and an expression of trepidation on her face. He glared at her small stature a few moments more before flicking his eyes towards the annoying blonde that had stood up in his cousin's defence.

The short blonde boy was standing with his team mates, the Uchiha and the pink-haired girl, nattering away. It was a surprise to him that the blonde had managed to pass the first exam at all. After all, the blonde did not look like he had any sense in his head whatsoever. His lips turning downwards in a frown, Neji turned his head away in disgust.

As he blinked, an image of Konoha's downtown flashed in his mind. Blinking again, Neji frowned, shaking his head. The strange flashes of images had steadily increased since he'd started his training at the academy. There were times when multiple images seemed to be displayed in his retinas that made his head ache and spin.

"Are you alright? The sightings again?"

Looking at his team mate, Neji nodded his head. "I'm fine, Tenten."

As he blinked again, the flash of bare skin had his face flaming. Turning his head to the sky, he waved Tenten away, his team mate giving him a strange look. Concentrating on the blue sky and birds, Neji waited for the heat in his face to subside. Gritting his teeth, he forced his mind to focus as he went through the simple mental exercises his uncle and Gai-sensei had insisted he learn to control his flashes of vision. The last year when he'd suddenly seen the whole town naked and then as masses of body organs had not been pleasant.

Finally, their head proctor for the second exam made an appearance. The woman was loud and brash as she spoke while eating skewers of dango.

"Alright, listen up you rookies! The second part of this exam will consist of a three day hunt and survival mission." called the woman as she thumbed the forest behind her.

"Survival is self-explanatory, worms. The hunt bit is what you need to pay attention to."

Several murmurs broke out among the teams as many shifted in either discomfort or anticipation.

Neji frowned in irritation as Lee who was standing beside him began to fidget in excitement once again. He often wondered if perhaps Lee and Gai-sensei's constant hyperactivity was due to a daily consumption of excessive sugar. Probably not.

"Each team will proceed to those tents over there and you will receive either this white or black data disk. Here's the hunt bit - within these three days, you will need to retrieve a pair of these disks and make your way to the command tower in the middle of the forest by the third day." smiled the woman evilly.

Once more, voices broke out amongst the teams as they realized possibly only half of the candidates here would be advancing on to the third and final part of the exam.

"Settle down, worms!" ordered the woman. "We will also be providing additional weapons to those you already have and bio-armor. No personal environmental shields as no chargers are allowed. Weapons limit is as much as _you_ can _carry_."

Tenten frowned. "Bio-armor slows reaction time a bit." she murmured.

Neji gave her a slanted glance. "I've hardly noticed any reduction in your time during training, Tenten."

Tenten gave a laugh. "I tend to slack, but I need everything I can give in bio-armor. That's why you don't notice it."

Neji raised an eyebrow. "That is hardly appropriate, Tenten. You should always give it your all."

Tenten looked away. "Alright, alright."

"The bio-armor tracks your positions in the forest for us proctors. But no assistance will be forth-coming in the allotted three days. This means, if you _die_ within the three days, that's _your_ problem. After the third day, _if_ there are any survivors within the forest-" (_which I doubt_) she muttered under her breath, "-and _not_ at the tower, the proctors will come in and retrieve you. Questions?" asked the woman.

A rather heavy looking boy raised a hand.

"Yes!"

"What do we eat?" came the boy's question. His team mates beside him groaned in exasperation with several mutters of "Chouji!" and the question, "Is _that_ all you think about, food?"

The lady proctor eyed the boy with amusement.

"You're gonna catch your own food of course. In there." she smirked, pointing at the forest. "Just make sure they aren't poisonous first. Of course, if you cannibalize your victims-"

A loud chorus of 'ewww's and 'gross' echoed from many of the girls in the teams gathered.

Neji wrinkled his nose at the disturbing thought as well. While it was probably doable, but it was not something he wanted to try any time soon.

* * *

As soon as the data disk, bio-armor and additional weapons were swiftly distributed to the teams, they were quickly herded to their assigned entry points by the many proctors. After calls for final checks on equipment were completed, the gates were opened and shouts of commencement were made.

_Forest of Death  
__Area 44,  
__Outlands_

Hidden in the dense foliage of the tree tops, they watched as the examinees poured into the forest, running and dodging vines and plants as each team searched for a suitable defence position before attempting to hunt the other teams. Watching them scurry about, they were like bugs.

Insignificant.

Pesky.

It would be so easy to just kill them.

But that was not what they was here for. They had other duties assigned to them on this day.

Seeking out the link to their bio-engineered blooms they had placed throughout the Forest, they searched for the Konoha teams. Their task was to observe and relay information back to their leader.

One of their blooms detected a strange substance.

"Sector 5, senses detect traces of clone matter, White."

"The traitor must be nearby. Let's go see, Black."

"No, our objective today isn't to hunt the traitor. We need to find the Gen-Ees."

"That's really no fun at all. Isn't Number Nine confirmed already?"

"Leader will not be pleased if we do not assess the other eleven subjects."

"Alright, alright. One Konoha team has been located to the south. Still scanning for the others."

The green-haired man stood up from his crouch on the tree branch and disappeared into the leaves of a nearby tree, his black cloak with red printed clouds making nary a sound except a soft gentle swish.

On an adjacent branch, a snake curled lazily in repose.

_'Why, if it isn't Zetsu... my old _colleague_. What a coincidence. I'm assessing the brats myself as well, though for my _own_ goals of course.' _snickered a pale man who was in reality a good distance away as he observed through the snake-construct's eyes.

Well, as interesting as all the Konoha Gen-Ees were, the one he was most interested in was the Gen-E of the Uchiha bloodline. How different was this Gen-E to his prototype brother?

Snickering, the pale man headed in the opposite direction of the one Zetsu had taken.

* * *

To be continued...

This was actually a shorter chapter than I had hoped, and was finished maybe a week ago but I was waiting to see if anything more came to mind. Also probably that my luck sucked that I need to do surgical extraction of my wisdom tooth. ( I can already see the pain and the money that's costing.)

**Next: Survival**

1/08/10


End file.
